Avengers Ark
by gandalf537
Summary: Be an Avenger, they said. As a shape-shifter, it'll be fun, they said. I just wanted to get a mission done with a few others...and the rest of my team was turned into animals. And I certainly can't tell the others... Then Thor brings Loki down to check the situation out...something bigger is going on here. And I'm going to have to figure it out. NO SPOILERS. On temporary hiatus.
1. It Started With A Mission

**Hello, everyone! To those following my other Avengers story 'SHIELD Academy', don't worry, I'm still continuing that one. If you want to check it out, go ahead, but don't forget to come back!**

 **The main POV in this story is Allison(Alli) Wilson, sister of Sam Wilson. She's a shape-shifter, so she can change into any animal or form at will. Anyways...hope you enjoy it!**

 **Summary: Be an Avenger, they said. As a shape-shifter, it'll be fun, they said. I just wanted to get a mission done with a few others...and the rest of my team was turned into animals. If the others find out, I'm dead meat. What on Earth have I gotten myself into?**

 **Set: After Civil War, but as if the Sokovian Accords didn't happen and they just went and got Bucky back.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own the MCU. I wish I did. I do not.**

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Chapter One: It Started With A Mission…

"Sam!" I scream into my earpiece. Our entire team for the mission, Sam, Wanda, Nat, Steve, and Bucky, has the tiny metal devices clipped into our ears. "Where are you?"

"Alli, no one understands a thing you're saying!" Steve yells from the ground. Right. I'm not in human form. I quickly change back and adjust my grip on the thin pipe I'm sitting on. The pipe groans under my weight. I ignore it.

"Sam!" I repeat. "Where are you? I need eyes on the other side." I hear metal hitting metal from Steve and metal hitting flesh from Bucky.

"I'm on it, sis," Sam says. I glance up and see him swoop around the giant, stone warehouse.

"How are you girls doing?" Steve asks as he swings his shield. I can barely make him and Bucky out, squabbling with seven men. Those men don't have a chance.

"We're already through," Wanda says.  
"Beat ya again, boys!" Nat calls. So they're already in the building.

"We could use some help, though," Nat admits. "Alli?"

"I'm on it," I say. "Be right back." I turn into a bird-a hawk. I prefer an eagle, but that would be too big of a target today. My transformations are smooth and easy. Sam took a video once, so I could see what it looks like to someone else. It was like I did several flips at once and emerged whatever animal I changed into. For me, it just feels like I melt into a different body. My human transitions are easier. The new or different feature just...well, it just kind of melts into place.  
Anyways, I swoop around the warehouse until I find the entrance Nat and Wanda used. It's not hard to find, seeing as _someone_ (*cough* NAT *cough*) arranged the bodies of soldiers they took down in a giant 'HA HA HA'.

"Could you be any more obvious?" I say. But of course, they don't understand me.

"Alli, hurry up," Nat grunts. "We've encountered more guards." I hear the sound of her fist hitting a face and the familiarness of Wanda's magic lifting someone into the air and throwing them across the room. The screams give it away.  
But I fly faster, through the open door. Nat and Wanda are a few hallways down. I follow the noises of fighting until I reach them, and then tumble to the ground in human form. I take out a guard by landing on his shoulders. I twist his head with my knees and hear a satisfying _pop_. Then I shift into a tiger and claw three more guards.

I shift back into human form. A few strands of my bushy black hair have come loose from my usual ponytail. I blow them out of my face, but they just float back down. I sigh. It never works.

"We good?" Wanda asks, looking around.

"I don't see any more guards," I say. "The boys are having some trouble, though."

"We _were_ having some trouble," Steve corrects me via earpiece. "We're all good now."

"Let me guess," Nat starts, rolling her eyes.

"You used Redwing," I finish.

"I used Redwing!" Sam shouts excitedly.

"Boys and their toys," Wanda mutters, shaking her head. "I will never understand them. First Steve with the frisbee, now this drone."

"Hey," Steve says.

"Whoa now," Sam says. I can just imagine my brother holding his hands up defensively.

"Don't get personal," Steve says. "It's not a frisbee."

Nat clears her throat. "The most versatile substance on the planet...and they used it to make a frisbee."

I wince. "Ultron…" Steve mutters. "Ultron said that."

"Don't remind us," Wanda says quietly. We all know she's thinking of her brother. I'm glad Sam and I were gone for that fight.

"We got more soldiers at twelve o'clock," Bucky interrupts. This is the first time he's spoken the entire mission.  
"We can't do anything about that," Nat reminds him. "We'll be securing the target."

"Alli, no more talking while you're flying," Sam reminds me. "Your constant squawking is getting annoying."

"It's not squawking," I say. "It's screeching."  
"Well, stop," Sam says. As if that decides it.

"Yes, sir," I sigh. I'll listen to him...for now.

Nat pulls her cell phone out of her pocket. A map of the warehouse lights up in a 3D hologram type thing. Several hundred dots move around as well. Most of the dots light up red, but six light up green-our six team members on the mission.

"Aright," Nat says as the three of us gather around her phone. "This is us." She points to three green dots right next to each other. "This is the target."

She scrolls around to several hallways away, a room in the exact center of the warehouse. "We need to get whatever it is they're cooking up in this lab."

"Please tell me it is not a goat," Wanda groans. "No more goats. No more firebreathing goats. No more firebreathing goats that take out the power while I'm practicing with explosives." I turn into a goat, and then back really quickly. Wanda gives me a playful shove, like the kinds friends give to each other. We are friends, I guess. The only friends I've ever really had are the Avengers.

Nat shudders. "No more goats," she agrees.

"That was not a fun night," I say, nodding seriously. It was not a fun night. Wanda nearly blew up the Avengers Facility, and we've taken up residence again at Stark Tower while they do repairs and get rid of the smell of smoke.

The room is completely filled with red dots. Even more surround the hallways around the room. It's like a cornucopia, the farther away you get, the less there are.

"Wanda, you go this way," Nat says, highlighting a route. "I'll go this way, and Alli, you go this way."

"What about us?" Steve asks. But his voice sounds _way_ too close. I look up and all three of us start as a vent cover clatters to the ground. Steve jumps down in his full Captain America attire, followed by Sam, whose wings are folded as tightly as possible, and Bucky, his metal arm glinting in the light from Nat's holograph of the warehouse. How did we not notice the other three dots creeping closer.

"Were you talking about the goat?" Bucky asks. "Please don't talk about the goat."

"Great," Nat says. "We'll partner up. Everybody-" In a rush of movement, the other five of us rush to find a partner. Wanda and I point at each other, Sam and Bucky each grab one of Steve's arms. Nat sighs.

"You and you. You and you. You and me," she says, pointing to each of us in turn. Wanda groans.

"NO!" Sam and I say in unison, looking at each other in disgust.

"Not happening," Bucky growls, glaring at Nat.

"Fine," Nat says. "Fine! Sam and Steve. Bucky and Alli. Me and Wanda. Good? You're all like little kids."

"Good," Steve says, nodding. Everyone looks satisfied. I know I'm satisfied, at least. If I had to choose three Avengers to be stuck on a mission with, it would probably be Wanda, Nat, and Bucky. I probably know Bucky better than I know Sam...and that's saying something. Sam, Wanda, Bucky, and I spent a lot of time talking about post-war stress after we got Bucky back.

"Let's go," Nat says, making sure everyone's routes are highlighted. "We'll meet up at the target."

"Hey," Steve says, looking confused. "What even is the target? I just know it's a machine of some sort."  
"We're not really sure what it does," Nat, the leader of the mission, says. "I was just told it was extremely dangerous."

"Same here," I say. "Tony wants us to bring it back undamaged. He emphasized the undamaged part. So don't damage it.  
"In case you didn't get that, she means don't blow it up," Sam informs the group, nodding with mock seriousness. I whack him on the arm.  
"Don't make me turn into a moose again," I warn him. Wanda shudders.

"Not the moose," Bucky says.

"Not the moose," Sam repeats, cracking his shoulder. I got very much ticked off at him one day and turned into a moose. It was fun for me...but not for the others. I didn't _mean_ for Wanda and Bucky to get in the way...okay, maybe I did. Just a little fun.

"Everybody, move out," Nat says, ticked off at us for joking around during the mission. I'm sure we'll be getting another lecture when we get back to Stark Tower…

Nat and Wanda take off down the hallway, the way the three boys came.

"She never said _how_ we had to get there, did she?" Sam asks. "Because those vents were _fun_."

Steve grins. "She never specified. Move out!" He and Sam clamber up into the vents. I hear the metal clanging on metal as Sam's wings and Steve's shield hit the sides of the vents.

"Be a little quieter!" I whisper-yell up to them as Bucky replaces the vent cover.

"No!" Sam yells back, but they do make an effort to be quieter. Less metal and more cursing as they hit their heads. I shake my head. Boys.  
"Let's go," Bucky says quietly to me. I nod and we turn away, down the hallway we're supposed to follow.

I notice that it's quiet - eerily so. Too quiet for a busy warehouse. Bucky notices, too, and tenses up.

"We're fine," I say. But I can't ignore the absence of the hums and whirring of machines that an evil scientist's base should have.

We creep silently down the hallway. I pull out my phone and a holomap like Nat's shows up. We can see Nat and Wanda, almost to the center room already, and Sam and Steve, in pretty much the same spot.

"Take a right," I whisper. "Two." Bucky nods. He knows what I'm talking about. We've done missions before.

I press my back against the corner, phone in one hand, my small pistol in the other. I prefer fighting in animal form, tigers and other cats work best, but I'm a great shot as well. Bucky swings around the corner. One punch to the face or chest and each guy goes down.

"All clear," he whispers.  
"More ahead," I say. "We've got five hallways to go. Left, three."

And so it goes on. We take a left. Three guards down. Two rights, six guards each. Bucky takes them down effortlessly.

"Two more," I say. "Eight of-"

Eight guards come running around the bend, guns out.

"Nevermind," I say. "Let's play Leap Frog." I drop into tiger form. Anything that was in my hands clatters to the floor, so down go my phone and gun. I spring at the first two. Two claws to the chest and they fall, providing a barricade for their friends against me. I roar in frustration and pace back and forth. Bucky retreats behind the corner, waiting for the signal.

These guards are, apparently, remorseless, and prop the dead men up. Three kneel behind them and take their guns out. They send fire after fire at me. I keep pacing. One good thing about my clothes melting with me is that all of my clothing is bulletproof, giving me bulletproof skin in whatever form I take. I flick the bullets off and roar again. The men stand down, cowering against the bodies of the fallen. I crouch, ready to spring, and scrape my claws against the ground twice.

That's the signal for an attack like this. Bucky runs around the corner, gun up and already firing. He jumps over me and barrels into the first three guys, taking them out instantly. He crouches on one knee and I spring over him into the final three guards. A snap of the neck, a claw of the legs, a bite on the arm sends the last one screaming around the corner. I shift back into human form and make my way back down the hallway to grab my phone and gun.

"Shit," I say as the light of the holographic map flickers feebly and then goes out. I smack my phone twice on my hand, and the map flickers back to life.

"Language," Steve says. Dammit, I forgot the earpiece was in.

"Don't start, Steve, you're the worst out of all of us," Nat warns him. "And were those screams coming from your end, Alli? It sounded like you were mauling someone."

"Cat's out of the bag now," Bucky says. He glances at me. "No pun intended. And yes, she was mauling someone."

"It's self defense," I insist. "When I'm a tiger, I can't exactly shoot someone like the rest of you."

"I don't shoot, I use magic to tear them limb from limb," Wanda mutters. "We've encountered a bit of trouble. Still a few hallways away."

"Yeah, so are we," Steve says. "Gave up on the vents."

"Your shield didn't fit," Sam corrects him. "I was fine."

"Shut up!" Nat yells. I hear the sound of flesh hitting flesh. "Just go already!"

"We're trying!" Bucky yells. He looks around the corner.

"Dammit," he says. "Vents. Now." He shoves me towards one a little bit down the hallway.

"How many are there?" I ask, my heart dropping.

"Whole hallway full of them," he says. He holds out his hand to boost me up. I stuff my phone and gun into my pockets and turn into a hawk. I flutter up, using my talons to remove the covers. Bucky hoists himself up as I hop down the hallway. He pulls the cover into place just as the first guard passes underneath us. We go unnoticed.

Bucky goes to drop back down. I shift back into human form. "Wait," I say, holding out my hand. I pull out my phone and the map pops up, flickering slightly.  
"More guards coming," I say. I stuff my phone back into my pocket. "We'll take the vents. Maybe we'll run into Sam."

"Hey!" Sam says. "We told you, we're not in the vents anymore."

"Well, we're almost there," Nat says.  
"First team there gets five bucks from Sam!" Steve says.

"Hey!" Sam protests. "What?"

"That money is mine!" I growl. I shift into a cat and scamper down the hallway, Bucky crawling behind me and cursing every time he hits his head.

"Language," Steve says.

"Shut up!" Nat, Bucky, and I say in unison. Well, I meow it. But they get the idea.

"We're almost there!" Wanda taunts.

"So are we!" Bucky says. I leap over the vent cover as Bucky pulls it off. He drops down into a room of extremely surprised scientists.

"The money is ours!" I call as I shift into human form and drop down. I take out my gun and shoot the first scientist I see in the leg. I always try not to kill...usually.

"Hell yeah!" Bucky says. "I'm gonna buy me a Starbucks!" He swings his metal arm and two more scientists go down.

I melt into tiger form and leap at three more, clawing them as fast as I can. More guards enter the room.

"We could use some help!" I call into my earpiece as I shift back to human form. I kick out at an unsuspecting scientist and catch him in the stomach. I l punch another in the jaw and slam a round of fire around the room.

"Little busy at the moment," Sam grunts. "I'll send-"

"-not...Redwing," Bucky groans, hitting a guard in the head. He crumples to the ground like a lifeless doll.

"Oo-okay," Sam says. "I won't send Redwing."  
"We'll be there in a minute," Nat says.

I hear Wanda scream, "BEHIND YOU!" and Nat's line goes dead.  
"Nat?" Steve asks. My heart drops.

"We're okay," Wanda says. "Her earpiece just fell out."

"Okay," Sam says, huffing a breath of relief. "Alli, can you open the door for us?"  
"On it," I say, turning back to the fight. "Bucky, cover me."

I turn to the door. Twenty feet, easy, if it weren't for the fifteen guards in my way.

I sigh. Bear time.

I morph into a large brown bear. I barrel down the first five. The next three barely have time to raise their weapons. The final seven go down with a few bites and swipes of my giant paws. I quickly shift back to human form and open the door.

"Sam?" I ask, looking around outside the room.

"Alli, close the door!" Sam screams, barreling down the corner, Steve in tow. Chasing them are tons of guards.

I slam the door shut.

"Change of plans!" I yell to Bucky. "Get the thing and go!"

Bucky looks up in confusion, but he must have some idea what's going on.

"Alli, we need at least three people to carry this thing!" he yells in disbelief.

"Just get the-"

"FREEZE!"

Bucky and I both jump and look up.

Bucky was right. I never got a good look at the machine, but it's huge, at least three times my size. Giant and silver, it ends in a point. This point has on it a shining, neon green ball crackling with energy.

A scientist is standing behind a set of controls-the scientist I shot in the leg, and didn't bother to finish off.

He smiles sinisterly. "Well now, won't this be fun. We've been waiting to have a test subject. Now we have two."

Bucky glances at me. I shake my head. We can't take him down, there are too many other guards.  
"Until the end," Bucky mouths. I nod in return.

"Until the end," I repeat. The saying is common among us now, and none of us know why.

The energy bolts charge into two separate beams of light. They crackle menacingly.

The scientist presses the button.

And then everything goes black.


	2. And Ended With A Zoo

**Chapter two is here! I hope you enjoy it...much thanks to DreamsAreMagical, who left a review along the lines of: "Stupid cliffhanger." DreamsAreMagical: Well, there's sort of a cliffhanger at the end of this one! Hopefully chapter three will be up by this weekend at the latest.**

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Chapter Two: ...And Ended With A Zoo

I groan and lift my...cat paw?! That's unusual...normally I wake up in the form of a dog. It helps me sleep best. I look up groggily…

The room is a mess. Oh wait, this isn't my room at the Avengers Facility, or my room at Stark Tower. This is the room the machine is in...the extremely dangerous machine. Through a haze of smoke I can make out another form slightly to my left. I get up and pad over, completely off-balance.

It's another cat, a little bit bigger than me. He's a dark brown color and has...a metal arm?

Oh no. This other cat is Bucky.

I nudge him with my paw. He stirs and rolls over, looking into my eyes. I crouch down, ready to pounce.

"Al...Alli?" he groans. It comes out as a meow, but I understand him perfectly.

"Oh, no," I say, my spirits falling.

"That machine...turned us into animals?" Bucky asks, shaking his head. "Wow. No wonder Stark wanted us to get it. How do we turn back?"

"I don't know," I admit.

"Can't you just shift into human form?" he asks, utterly bemused to why I hadn't thought of that.

"Oh, yeah," I mew, nodding sheepishly. I easily shift back into human form, sitting on the ground next to the chocolate-brown cat next to me.

"You can change back," he says.

"Yeah, I noticed," I grumbled.

"Can you understand me?" he asks.

"I can understand all animals," I tell him. "Trust me, some of that I don't want to hear."

"That's nice…" Bucky says.

I stand up. Bucky jumps at my leg.

"Ow!" I exclaim. "Bucky, if you haven't noticed, you have a _metal paw_." Bucky looks down and tries licking his paw. I sigh and scoop him up.

"Hey!" he protests, scratching at my arm feebly. I scritch him behind the ears and he purrs.

"Cats," I mutter, waving my arm to try and clear some of the smoke away. When I see the machine my spirits fall. It's completely destroyed.

"Now how are we going to turn you back?" I ask Bucky.

"I don't know," he says pointedly. His nose twitches. He jumps down from my arms and scampers into the smoke. I follow, being careful not to step on anything-or anyone. It appears all of the guards that were in here are lying on the floor. Maybe the others broke in and were trying to help? But where are they now?

My answer is found when we reach what Bucky was searching for. A Golden Retriever dog is laying on the ground, half-buried underneath Captain America's shield. Bucky nudges the dog with his head and I hear a chirp. I look up as a flurry of wings perches on my shoulder. It's a hawk-no, a falcon. A peregrine falcon, but it's _red_.

The falcon nips at my ear and caws.

"Hey, Alli," the bird says.

"Oh my God," I say, nearly laughing even in the direness of our situation. "Sam, you're an _actual_ falcon."

"YES!" Sam screams in my ear. He flies to the ground and catches Steve's shield in his talons, trying to drag it off of the dog. Bucky paces the ground, meowing infrequently.

I help the falcon-Sam, the Falcon, the falcon-drag the shield off the dog. Bucky meows again and nudges the dog with his head. The dog stirs and looks up feebly.

"A-Alli?" it says. Then it completely flips out. It jumps up and start running in circles around me, Bucky, and Sam. It's bright golden fur is tinted with dust.

"BARK! BARK BARK!" the dog barks.

"Argh!" Bucky cries, jumping into my arms again. Sam perches on my shoulder as the dog keeps running.

I sigh.

"Down," I tell Sam and Bucky. They both hop down and huddle close to my legs as the dog runs faster. I shift into a dog, slightly larger than this Golden Retriever. A German Shephard, I believe.

"HEY!" I bark at the dog. The dog immediately ceases his running.

"Alli?" the dog asks in the voice of Steve Rogers. "Alli? Is that you? Where are we? What's going on? There's a cat and a bird behind you, Alli. Do you know that?"

"Steve, calm down," I say gently.

"Calm down?" he asks indignantly. "Calm down?! I'm a dog, Alli! I can smell things and hear things and I have _four freakin' legs_!"

"Steve," I say. "Chill. The cat is Bucky and the falcon is Sam."

"Sam? Bucky? They're animals too? We're all animals, Alli!" Steve the dog's eyes grow wide as he sees the machine behind me.

"Alli, we're stuck like this forever!" he cries, then promptly starts running in circles again. Bucky hisses and draws closer to my side. Sam perches on my head.

"Steve, calm DOWN!" I bark. Steve freezes.

"I can't calm down, Alli, I can't!" he cries, and starts running again.

"BARK! BARK BARK!" he yells. But he's not talking and I'm not translating-he's _literally_ saying 'bark'.

"BARK BARK BARK!" Steve cries. Bucky hisses again.

Sam hops down off my head and I shift into a cat.

"He's going crazy," Bucky hisses.

"You can say that again," I say, rolling my cat eyes.

"He's going crazy," Bucky repeats.

I laugh. "He'll calm down," I promise.

"He better," Bucky grumbles.

"Hey, sis," Sam says, knocking my paw with a talon-bump. "How's it going?"

"You're not at all concerned that you are a bird and we have no immediate way to turn you back?" I ask in disbelief.

"I can't understand you," Sam says. "All I hear is meows."

I sigh and morph into a falcon.

"You're not at all concerned that you are a bird and we have no immediate way to turn you back?" I repeat.

"Nope," he says. "I'm the Falcon, I'm a falcon. I can fly. How hard can it be?"

"Can you hunt?" I ask, raising my nonexistent falcon eyebrow.

"No…" Sam says uncertainly.

"Don't worry," I say cheerfully. "We'll find you some dead mice to eat."

Sam's eyes widen. "You'll what?!" he cries.

"Just kidding," I say. "I'm gonna calm Steve down."

"No mice," Sam whispers as I morph back into a dog.

"Steve!" I bark. "Steve!"  
"BARK BARK!" Steve yells frantically.

"OREOS!" I yell. Steve freezes. His ears twitch.

"Oreos?" he asks. "Did you says Oreos?" I hate to resort to this, but normal Steve Rogers is in love with Oreos.

"Sit and I'll give you Oreos," I tell him. Steve sits. I shift back into human form and reach into my pocket. I pull something out, but hide it so Steve can't see what it is.

He trots over and eagerly laps the food up. Then he promptly collapses to the ground, unconscious. Bucky gives a meow of outrage and Sam shrieks.

"Calm down," I say. "It's those sleeping pill things. It was just one pill. He'll be fine in a few hours."

Bucky hisses at me regardless and curls up a few feet away from Steve. Sam pecks my foot and looks up at me hopefully.

"No, Sam, I do not actually have Oreos," I sigh. Sam looks down and pecks my foot again, hard, out of spite. I whack his bird head and he pecks me one last time before fluttering to perch near Bucky and Steve.

"Someone's missing…" I mutter, looking around. "Right." Natasha and Wanda. I'll have to pray they're still human, but stuck in the hallway.

"Stay here, guys," I command the boys. "I'm going to go look for Nat and Wanda."

Bucky yawns. Sam opens one eye and then settles down. Steve doesn't move.

"No offers to come with?" I ask sarcastically. Sam closes his eyes. Bucky rests his head on his paws. Steve still doesn't move.

"Okay, I get the picture," I say. "I'll be right back." I turn towards the smoke and mutter, "Hopefully."

It takes me almost five minutes to find the door not three feet away. This isn't going to work. Once I'm able to wrench the door open, the smoke floods into the hallway. I drop down into the form of a slim tiger. Down lower, most of the smoke has cleared and I'm able to see better. Using my enhanced sense of smell, I sniff out Nat. I can't pick up a scent for Wanda, though, which troubles me. Flies buzz around my ears. I flick them off and continue on my way.

I come upon the snake a few hallways down. It's coiled up into a spiral, resting peacefully. Did they leave it here as a trap for us? Hope it eats us whole? It's a giant boa constrictor, could eat a horse in one bite.

I touch it with one paw, then spring back. The snake looks up wearily, moves its head back and forth-

-then springs at me, hissing. I bat its head down with one paw and hiss back.

The snake eyes me warily, debating on what to do. I almost laugh, because I know that look.

I morph into a python, about as large as this snake. "Natasha?" I ask.

The boa constrictor lets out a laugh. "Alli! You ssscared the heck out of me! Alssso, why am I a ssssnake?"

I sigh. "Long story short, we were all turned into animals," I tell her.

"Like, all of _usss_...or everyone in the warehoussse?" Nat asks. The flies I noticed before buzz quicker in the air around us.

I think back. I didn't see anyone in the room with the now destroyed machine…

"Oh my God," I whisper. "Everyone is an animal."

Nat coils back up and buries her head in the center of the coil. She lets out a long groan that comes out as a _hiss_.

"Do you know where Wanda is?" I ask cautiously. Nat's head shoots up.

"You don't know where Wanda isss?" she cries. "Oh no. Oh no. That'sss not good. She wasss right next to me. Oh no."

"It's okay," I say. I shift back into human form. "We'll find her." Nat snakes around my feet (no pun intended) and slithers down the hall. I run after her, trusting her to know where Wanda might have gone. As we go down hallway after hallway, I think.

If I bring them back to Stark Tower in this state, I'm dead. Like, literally dead. Tony will kill me for losing the machine, Rhodey and Clint will kill me for getting their friends turned into animals, and Vis would kill me by trying everything he can to turn them back and most likely be unsuccessful. I'm dead.

I'll have to sneak them in. Make up an excuse. Pray that they don't bug me about it. Yeah, that's it. As long as Wanda is as small of an animal as the others, it'll be-

-fine.

Lumbering around the corner is a giant, five hundred pound, pure white polar bear. Her eyes are red, and she does not look happy.

"W-wanda?" I ask. The bear growls cautiosuly.

Nat hisses at me. "Do sssomething," she says.

I shift into a polar bear, roughly the same size as Wanda.

"Wanda?" I ask again.

"Yes," the bear says in Wanda's accented voice. "What am I?"  
"You're a polar bear," I say.

"And the snake?"

"Natasha," I reply. Wanda sighs.

"Hello," she says to Nat. Nat hisses and slithers up Wanda's legs until she's resting in between Wanda's shoulders. She raises her head and looks at me. They both do.

"O-o-kay," I say. "Now we find the boys."  
"You haven't found them yet either?" Nat says indignantly.

"What did she say?" Wanda asks.  
"Sorry, but I have to figure this out," I say. "Wanda, can you understand me?"

"Yes," Wanda says, nodding like I'm stupid.

"Nat, can you understand me?" I ask.

"What wasss that? All I hear isss growling," Nat says, blinking. Her tongue flicks out and then back in.

I morph into human. "Can you both understand me?"  
"Yess," Wanda and Nat say in unison.

"And I can understand both of you…" I mutter. "Alright, I got this. You can all understand me when I'm the same animal as you and when I'm in human form, but you can't understand each other or if I'm a different animal. But I can understand all animals, so I can understand you regardless of what form I take."  
Nat blinks. Wanda stares.

"Makes sense," Wanda shrugs, nearly throwing Nat off her back.

"Let's go get the boys," I say. Before either can reply, I say, "I left them in the other room. Steve was going crazy so I had to knock him out."  
I turn and walk down the hallway, Wanda lumbering behind me. Nat rests on her head and shoulders, calm as can be. I'm very surprised they aren't flipping out more. Shock, I guess.

I make several wrong turns before I hear frantic meowing and several bird caws that lead us in the right direction. We burst into the center room to find the unconscious dog-Steve behind Bucky and Sam. Bucky is meowing as loud as he can. Sam is staggering around, dazed. In front of them, with his back to us, is a fully grown lion.

"Your friends are not coming," the lion says. "My guards are keeping them at bay." It speaks in the voice of the scientist that turned us into animals.

"Yeah, I don't think so," I tell him. I morph into a tiger, my preferred large cat, and spring at the lion.

He's completely caught off guard for not just a tiger, but a polar bear and a snake as well. I swipe my claws down his face. Nat springs off Wanda and bites at his feet. Wanda catches him with blow after blow from her giant paws.

"Maybe next time make sure that your guards are useful animals and not flies," I tell him. He looks at me, confused, because he can't understand a word I'm saying. This is the intended effect. I rake my claws down his muzzle, and Nat bites his neck. He collapses to the ground, unconscious or dead I don't know and don't care.

"You okay?" I ask as I shift back into human form.

"Fine, fine," Sam says. His eyes roll back on forth and he falls onto one side. I see Bucky resist the temptation to spring at him. A cat, a dog, and a bird. Suddenly I regret the decision to leave the three of them alone. That could have ended very badly.

"We need to think up cover stories for all of you," I say. "I can easily sneak all of you in except Wanda."  
"Go in at night," Nat suggests.

"What did she say?" Bucky asks. "Also, I'm assuming the polar bear is Wanda. Am I right?"  
"Yes," I say.

"Okay. Cause she's moving the parts of the machine."

I whirl around and see the machine fall to the ground. The red magic seeps away. Wanda looks sheepish and sits down, shaking the floor.

"Okay, we'll go in at night," I say. "No, not night, because Vis is usually up, isn't he?" Wanda nods.

"When is the best time to sneak you in?" I ask her.

"He is usually in his room around four," she says. "And Stark gets up at five, so that is probably the best time."

"Alright," I say. "We sneak Wanda in at four-thirty…" I check my watch. Eleven at night. Wow...we were out for a long time.

"Which gives us five hours to get back," I say. "Our cover story is you're sick and very, very contagious, and you don't want to see anyone."  
"Got it," Wanda says.

"You have… a bad cold," Bucky suggests. "No? No one? No one got that. Okay."  
"Sam...I could say I was bringing you as a present for my brother. A rare, red falcon for the Falcon."  
"Sounds good," Sam says.

"Nat," I say. "Can you sneak in on your own?"

"Yesss," Nat says. "I'll be fine."

"Great," I say, thinking. "Our cover story for you is that you went on another solo mission."

"Sssoundsss like me," Nat admits.

"Now for Steve," I say. "Um...he's a stray I found?"

"Sounds good to me," Bucky says. "And I could have the same cover story." I relay this news to the others.  
"Yeah, but Rhodey is allergic," Sam points out. "Or is he? Maybe I'm thinking of something else…"

"Rhodey can get over his allergy," I say. "That's what we're gonna do."

"And why are the three of us gone?" Sam asks, gesturing to himself, Bucky, and Steve.

"Um...guys week out?" I ask. "Three best friends wanting to get to know each other better?"

Bucky shrugs. "Good enough," he says. "How are we gonna get back?"

"How are we going to get back?" Wanda asks at the same time.

"How we got here," I say. "Steve drove a car, didn't he? Thinking we were going to bring back a giant machine?"

Wanda nods.

"Let's go," she says. We make our way back to the outside of the warehouse. We drape Steve over Wanda's back. Sam flies overhead, Nat slithers, leading the way, and Bucky pads slightly behind. Every time his metal paw hits the ground it makes a soft _clink_.

We emerge the same way I assume the boys came in. Parked some distance away is a white van. The window are all blacked out, thankfully, and it has a giant sliding door. The only problem is, we don't have the keys.

"Here," Sam says. He flies up and breaks the window open with his beak.

"That works," I say, laughing. I reach in, careful not to get glass on my hand, and unlock the door. I open it and unlock the rest of the doors. I use the giant sliding door to get Wanda into the back. She curls up and stares out the back. We lay Steve next to her. Nat stays with them and coils up instantly. I climb into the driver's seat. Bucky takes shotgun, the tips of his ears barely reaching the glove box. Sam perches on the dashboard. I hotwire the car, something I learned from Sam and Rhodey a while back. I come up with my fingers covered in dirt. Bucky cat-snorts.

"Nice job," he says. The engine whirs to life and I shift the car into drive.

"Onwards to Stark Towers!" I announce. "Let's all pray we don't get caught!"


	3. Let's All Pray We Don't Get Caught!

**Look, it's chapter three! And two days earlier than promised! Again, much thanks to all of your kind reviews and the many follows! Enjoy, my fellow MCU fans! Next chapter should be up soon!**

* * *

Chapter Three: Let's All Pray We Don't Get Caught!

"We're here!" I announce to the members of the car. Bucky looks up from where he was sleeping, then puts his head back down. "Let's review the plan one more time, shall we?"

Nat sighs. "I sneak in through a window and keep watch while you get Wanda in. Then you get Steve in. Then you get Sam in. Then you get Bucky in. Then you go to breakfast and tell everyone the cover stories, but-"

"-only if they ask," Wanda finishes. We found some pills Tony created a little while ago so people can understand me while I'm in animal form. We forgot about them until Sam went searching for food in the glovebox. Now we can all understand each other. Wonderful.

I glance into the back. Steve is still out cold, but I'm afraid he'll wake up soon. I dig around in my pocket until I find another sleeping pill. I climb into the back and slip it into his mouth.

"Stay down," I order the boys. I pull the sliding door of the white van open. Wanda lumbers carefully to the ground. Nat slithers out behind her, an extra earpiece attached to her ear so she can contact me. She makes her way to the gutter.

"I'll tell you when I'm in," she says. I nod in response and turn to Wanda.

"Let's do this," Wanda says, right before I can say it. She laughs. I lay one hand in her fur and glance around cautiously, making sure no cars are coming. I pulled up as close as I could to the curb, so we just have the short five feet to the entrance to the building.

"I'm in," Nat says. "You're clear."

"Go," I order Wanda. We run as fast as we can, the sliding glass doors opening easily for us as they identify my retina through a quick scan.

"Inside, inside," I say, shoving Wanda forward. "Get in the elevator."  
Wanda growls at me. I bury myself into her fur and press the button as the doors close. They open again on the floor where our rooms are. There have to be at least twenty, about ten permanent ones, but plenty of them are empty for people like Clint and Thor who come and go.

"I'll check up on you later," I promise Wanda as we tiptoe down the hallway. Well, I tiptoe, she lumbers. "SHH!" I hiss. She walks quieter, but it's still very loud. I'm afraid we're going to startle Vision, when-

"Get down!" Wanda says. She crouches down and buries her head under her paws. I stand in the middle of the hallway, looking like an idiot. Her room is only a few doors away…

I whirl around as another door opens. Well, it doesn't open, but I sense someone behind me.

Vision phases through the wall. "Alli?" he asks, looking very startled.

"Oh…" I say. "Um, hi?"

"Is everything alright?" he asks curiously.

"Fine!" I say quickly. Wanda's door slams behind. I let out a breath of relief-we weren't caught. "Wanda's just not feeling well."  
"Is there anything I can assist with?" Vis asks.

"No, no, she's...um...she's very contagious," I say, nodding vigorously.

"I cannot get sick," Vis reminds me.

"She doesn't want to see anyone," I say. "Sorry, Vis. Maybe, like, when she's better."

Vis nods and phases back through the wall, all thoughts of whatever he was going to do forgotten.

"Clear to proceed," Nat hisses through my earpiece.

"Couldn't have warned me about that, huh?" I ask sarcastically. Nat laughs.

"Jussst go get Sssteve," she says. "Hurry...you only have a few minutesss."

"I'm going," I say. I jog back to the elevator, back outside, where Sam and Bucky are waiting.

"Five minutesss," Nat warns me. "Then Ssstark'sss alarm goesss off."

"Alright," I say. I hoist Steve over my shoulder. "Sam, come on," I say. Sam leaps up to perch on my other shoulder.

"Bucky, I'll be back," I promise. Bucky just stares at me. I sigh and race back into the building. Up the elevator again, being very cautious outside Vision's door. I let Sam into his room.

"Thanks," he says, and flutters towards the balcony.

"No going outside!" I yell at him. "Just...stay here. I'll bring you food later."

"Fine," Sam grumbles. "Can I at least turn on the television?"

"If you keep it down," I say. I close the door behind him.

I go to Steve's room. It's locked. "Crud," I mutter. "You couldn't have left it unlocked, just this once?" I say to the unconscious dog. I wrestle the door open somehow, using one of Steve-dog's nail. I set him on his bed and slip him another sleeping pill, just to be safe. I'll come back and talk to him later, but for now I just leave him in his room, making sure the door is completely closed.

"You're all good," Nat hisses into the earpiece. "I'll be in my room." Her voice sounds much closer. I turn around and see a boa constrictor behind me, making me jump a foot backwards. Nat shakes in silent laughter and slithers past me. Being a snake, she can't get the door open. I make a move to help her but she uses her fangs instead. She slams the door shut with her tail-like, really, really loudly.

"Two minutesss," she hisses. I sprint down the hall and down the stairs, not bothering to use the elevator. I make it to the car and drive around to the garage.

"Hurry up," Bucky meows impatiently. I park the car and lock the doors through the shattered bit of window.

"Come on," I say, holding out my arm. He jumps up onto it and makes himself comfortable.

"You don't know how weird this is," I mutter as I jog towards the door.

"Trust me, it's weirder for me," Bucky says.  
"One minute," Nat warns me.

I burst through the door to the main floor. "Too late!" Nat cries, then the earpiece shuts off.

"Shit," Bucky hisses as the elevator doors open. I freeze and adjust Bucky so his metal paw is hidden against my chest.

"Act like a cat," I mutter to him. Bucky stares straight at me.

"That's not a normal cat!" I cry indignantly. He looks the other way and yawns.

" _Thank_ you!" I say. Then I turn back to the elevator as Tony Stark steps out. He startles when he sees me.

"Oh," I say. "Um, hey, Tony!"

He blinks once. "You have a cat," he says.

"Thanks, Sherlock," I say. "I have a cat. What else is new?"

"You have a cat," he repeats.

"Tony, I'm a shapeshifter. You don't think I'm going to make some friends?" I say, putting on a pouty face.

Tony scowls. "I hate it when you do that. You know, I'm pretty sure someone around here is allergic to cats…"

"Pleeease?" I say.

"I don't know…" Tony says doubtfully.

"He's a stray!" I protest.

"It's a he?" Tony asks. "Does he have a name?"

"Um…" I think, racking my brain. Bucky...Bucky Barnes...Barnes...Barns… Barns! Barns have animals! But who would call a cat Horse?!

"Pig!" I say. "His name is...Pig!"

"Pig?!" Tony says. Bucky hisses at him.

"Alright, alright, you can keep him," Tony sighs. I give a huff of relief and brush past him to the elevator.

"Hey, wait a minute," Tony says. I freeze. Bucky tenses. "Where are the others?"

I turn back around and grimace. "Um...Nat went on a solo mission...and the boys went out for a week to get to know each other?"

Tony frowns. "And...Wanda?"

"She's sick," I say. "Highly contagious. Doesn't want to see anybody, not even Vis."

Tony nods doubtfully. "Okay…" he says. Bucky hisses at him again.

"I'll just be...doing...my normal stuff…" Tony says, backing away from my angry cat-friend.

I hurry into the elevator and press the doors closed button as fast as I can, before Tony thinks of anything else.

Bucky fidgets, wanting to jump down. "Wait," I hiss to him. The doors open and I hurry down the hallway. I open the door to Bucky's room and close it behind me. Bucky springs free and jumps onto his dresser so he's level with my eyes.

"Pig?!" he asks indignantly. "Really?! You're calling me _Pig_?!"

"I'm sorry!" I cry. "I was thinking of Barnes and then I was thinking of barns and who would call a cat _Horse_ and then I panicked and….ugh!"

Bucky laughs. "So I'm a stray cat named Pig. I've seen weirder."

I give a weak smile. "I'll be back with food later. Don't make too much noise!"

"I won't," Bucky promises, jumping from the dresser to his bed. I leave the room and close the door behind me. As I head to my own room, I check my watch. Six AM...maybe I can squeeze an hour or two of sleep in. I open the door to my room. It's a fairly simple room. Bed, closet, dresser, television, five bookcases, a movie case, a desk, and that's about it. Okay, so the five bookcases aren't normal, but most of them are on various animals and stuff.

Not even bothering to take off my bulletproof over-clothes, I collapse onto the bed and fall into a deep sleep.

* * *

"Alli! Wake up!"

I groan and shove a pillow over my head.

"Alli, get out of bed or so help me I'll come in there and claw your eyes out!"

I realize with a start that it's not one of the others banging on my door, but Bucky yowling for me. I leap out of bed, throw my hair back into a sloppy bun and open the door. Bucky is pacing in front of me.

"The others are in training," he says. "Tony told them everyone's excuse for not being here, but Steve is up, Sam is screaming, and Wanda needs help."  
"Who's the most urgent?" I ask breathlessly.

"Wanda," he says. "She's a freaking polar bear, Alli, in a seventy-degree room."

I groan and rush into the hallway. I throw open Wanda's door, Bucky close behind. Wanda growls when we enter, but then goes back to sitting in front of a fan. I go to the thermostat.

"How low?" I ask.  
"Cold," Wanda pants. "Very cold. And send up some fish. Or seal. Do we have seal? I'm craving seal. Raw, bloody seal…"

"I'll send up some fish," I say as I turn the thermostat to negative ten degrees Fahrenheit. Onto the next person.

"Go tell Sam if he's bored it's not my fault," I say. "And tell both him and Wanda I'll bring up food in a bit." Bucky nods and pads down the hallway, not the least bit in a hurry.

I go to Steve's room and open the door very slowly. Thankfully, he isn't running in circles. He's sitting in the exact middle of the room, staring at me. I close the door quickly.

"How are you doing?" I ask him.

"I am a dog," he says calmly. "Is my shield here?"

"Oh, um…" I trail off, looking around. I spot it on a chair. Someone must have brought it up from the car...but didn't say anything?  
"I want to play fetch with it," he informs me. "I have a burning desire to play fetch, and I don't know why."

"Probably because you're a dog," I say. "Don't worry about it. We'll find a way to change you back."  
"Good," he says.

"I'll send up some food in a little bit," I say. Steve nods, turns three times in a circle, and promptly falls asleep.

Great. Now I have to find food for not only myself, but a cat, a dog, a falcon, a snake, and a polar bear. What on Earth have I gotten myself into?!

Be an Avenger, they said. As a shapeshifter, it'll be fun, they said. Well now I've gotten half the team turned into animals and can't tell the others. Oh, if the press got news of this, I'd be screwed. I can imagine it now: _Breaking news! Avengers team member Allison Wilson, aka the Shifter, has gotten Captain America, Black Widow, the Falcon, Scarlet Witch, and the Winter Soldier turned into animals! A shamed Wilson left the Avengers yesterday, claiming it wasn't her fault!_

I shake those thoughts out of my head. No, I tell myself. It wasn't my fault. It was that accursed scientist's fault. And he got himself turned into an animal, too. I wonder what they were playing at in the first place, building a machine that could turn people into animals…

I rush down the stairs, not wanting to encounter anyone. Normally we take the elevator, because it's so much faster. I go into the main kitchen area and open the fridge. Perfect...it has everything I need. Three giant fish for Wanda, some more fish for Sam, a whole ham for Nat, some chicken for Steve, and tuna for Bucky. I'm really hoping that the gang wasn't planning on making fish tonight. Or anything meat related in general. I grab a chocolate bar for myself, because I haven't eaten in what seems like days. Then I go upstairs to make the rounds.

Since I've neglected my brother since I dropped him off last night-I mean, early this morning-I stop by his room first. Sam is holding a video game controller in his talons and is attempting to play Mario Kart while flying.

"Hey, sis!" he calls when he sees me. "Buck put this on for me! You can just set the food on my bed." I drop two pieces of fish on his bed.

"See you later," I say. "I'll bring some more food back tonight." I close the door, balancing the rest of the food in one arm.

Steve is up and jumping around. His tongue wags back and forth in time with his tail. On closer inspection, he's attempting to catch a butterfly.

"Here's some food," I say, setting down the chicken. Steve stops jumping. The butterfly flutters out of an open window.

"Thanks!" he barks happily.

"You doing okay?" I ask. Steve nods and starts gobbling down. I smile slightly and leave the room.

I'm completely unprepared for Wanda's room. There are icicles hanging from the ceiling. Someone turned on the sprinkler system, but it's so cold that _snow_ is coming from the sprinklers. Wanda is lounging next to her bed on a pile of snow, watching the news. The remote is next to her. When she sees me, she uses one huge tooth to turn the television off.

"Hey," I say, sitting on the bed and shivering. She looks at the bundle in my arms hopefully. I set three pieces of fish next to her and she looks sad.

"No seal?" she asks.  
"Somehow, I don't think we're going to have any seal," I say, laughing.

"Alright," Wanda says, shrugging. She devours one of the fish whole. "I'll see you later."

"I'll bring more food," I tell her. I leave the freezing room with only an entire ham and a single can of tuna. _Hmmm…I wonder which one goes to the snake and which to the cat?_ I think sarcastically. I stop by Nat's room first, since it's right next to Wanda's. The lights are entirely out. The only light in the room is a sliver of sunlight shining through a cracked curtain. I can make out the coiled shape of a boa constrictor, sound asleep. I leave the ham just inside the door and exit the room silently. One stop left.

I open Bucky's door and peer inside. He's laying, curled in a ball, on his bed. When I open the door his head shoots up. "Food?" he asks hopefully. In answer, I hold up the can of tuna. He grins, which looks very strange as he is a cat.

"Great," he says, licking his lips. He springs off the bed and pads towards me. I crack open the can and watch as he eats it.

"Your room is a mess," I say, looking around. Not like a normal messy room, with clothes and dishes, but books are strewn everywhere. Several screens are all emitting various things. Music plays from a radio.

"I can't exactly clean it," Bucky says, rolling his eyes. "I'm trying to catch up with modern literature." I hold up a copy of _The Lord of the Rings_.

"This isn't exactly modern, you know," I tell him.

"I have a lot of catching up to do!" he meows indignantly. I laugh.

"Alright," I say. "I'm going to go catch up on training. I'll see you tonight."

"With more food?" he asks.

"With more food," I confirm.

"Oh, and, um…" Bucky trails off. "I kinda have an itch I can't reach behind my ear…"

"And?" I say, pausing on my way out the door.  
"And…can you scratch it? Please?" he mews.

I sigh and scratch behind his chocolate-brown ears. His tail twitches.

"Thanks," he says. "You can go now."

I shake my head, smiling, and close the door. Hurrying down the stairs so I won't miss a ton of training, I remember the chocolate bar in my pocket and stuff it in my mouth. I burst into the training room. Tony is helping Rhodey with some flying tricks. Vision and Clint, who's here for the week, are talking in another corner.

"Hey, Alli!" Clint calls. "Where is everyone?"

I take a deep breath. "Wanda is sick, Nat's on a mission, and Sam, Steve, and Bucky are taking a vacation."

Clint shrugs. "More food for the rest of us."

"Hey, guys!" Tony calls, holding up his phone. "I just got a call from Thor!"

"And?" Vis asks patiently.

"He's coming back soon!" Tony says.

"Good," Vis says. "I was hoping to discuss his hammer."

"Great," Rhodey says sarcastically. "Now there are two of them."

"Someone get a room ready for him," Tony says. "He could probably use Steve's."

"No!" I say immediately. All four of them look at me.

"I mean...Steve's room is a mess," I lie. "He hasn't cleaned it in months, and I doubt he would like someone touching his stuff, even if it's just Thor."

"Well...he can use one of the guest rooms, I guess," Tony says, going back to his training with Rhodey. Vis turns back to his conversation with Clint.

I turn to go back upstairs all thoughts of training forgotten. I have to keep this a secret…

As the door swings behind me, I hear Rhodey ask, "Hey, who wants fish for dinner?"


	4. Thunder God

**Hello my lovely MCU fans! Thor is here...I wonder what trouble this will bring for Alli…*insert evil devil face here* Sorry it's a lot shorter but I had a good cliff hanger ending (my sincerest apologies to DreamsAreMagical) Thank you for your reviews, favorites, and follows! Enjoy chapter four!**

* * *

Chapter Four: Thunder God

" _Alli, stop fidgeting," Sam ordered me._

" _Yeah, but what if he finds out?" I asked. "This is freaking Captain America, for God's sake. Member of the Avengers and all that jazz."_

" _He's not gonna find out unless you tell him," Sam told me._

" _I'm an Enhanced!" I cried. "What if he just_ knows _?"_

" _He won't," Sam said. "Calm down."_

 _I groaned and left the room. Once I was sure the windows were all closed, I shifted into the form of a cat, the most calming thing I could think of. I paced back and forth, and then joined Sam in the living room again._

 _To my immense surprise, he was already talking with Steve Rogers._

 _Steve startled when he saw me. "I didn't know you had a cat," he says. Sam's eyes widened._

" _Yeah, this is...this is Alli. My...my cat," Sam said nervously._

" _Meow," I said._

" _Nice to meet you," Steve said, giving me a pat on the head. I turned and walked back out of the room. I shifted back into human form and walked back into the living room._

" _Hello," I said. "You must be Steve."_

 _Steve smiled. "Hey. I just met your cat."_

 _I glared at Sam._

" _Yeah," I said. "Our_ cat _."_

" _What's wrong?" Steve asked. "And hey, what's your name?"_

" _Allison," I said. "But you can call me Alli."_

" _Wasn't that the cat's name?" Steve asks, frowning slightly._

" _About that," Sam said. "She_ is _the cat."_

And that was it. My secret was out. Allison Wilson, sister of Sam Wilson, is the famed Shifter, and human who changes her form at will. Stopping crimes every other day in Washington, D.C., until I was found out. Now I'm an Avenger.

I take a deep breath. I'm in the same situation now. Very anxious and very fidgety that I'm going to be found out. But this time, it's much more important. This could literally be a case of life or death-Thor's been having some self-control issues lately.

I hear a slamming noise outside Stark Tower. "He's here!" Tony cries. I look up as Thor enters the room, swinging his hammer back and forth.  
"It's an Asgardian! Everybody run!" Rhodey screams, flinging his hands into the air. Clint rolls his eyes. Everyone rushes to Thor, glad to see him. He frowns slightly when he notices the absence of so many.

"Where is everyone?" he asks.

"Nat is on a mission, Wanda is sick, Sam, Steve, and Bucky went for a vacation," I recite. "How are you?" Best tactic ever, especially with Thor. Direct the conversation back to himself. We sit down to dinner. Sadly, there is no fish. Or ham. Or chicken. Probably because I gave it all to the zoo that's started upstairs.

We make idle chatter throughout the meal. Everything goes perfectly smooth.

Until Bucky decides to show up halfway through dinner. He comes padding down the stairs, licking his lips.

"What's this?" Thor says as soon as he sees the cat.

"This is Pig," I say, swallowing hard. "He's a stray I adopted."

"Pig?" Thor says, raising his eyebrows. "What a strange name for a cat. Do you have any fish?"

I shake my head. "Someone ate it all," I say. "There was none when I checked this afternoon." This is very untrue. Thor raises his eyebrows higher. Bucky meows. He's disguised his metal arm-er, paw-with some sort of paint. I can still see bits of metal shining through, but my time spent as animals has perfected my senses. I doubt the others have noticed.

I glare daggers at him. As soon as I get away from the others, he's a dead man-I mean, cat.

"So, Pig," Thor says. "Do you like Stark Tower?"

I want to slam my head on the table. Being a god, Thor can understand animals...or can he? Was he just making small talk? With a cat? I nearly laugh at the thought. A god making small talk with a cat. I must be going crazy.

"Yes," Bucky says. "It's quite nice." My eyes shoot daggers at Bucky, who sits down and licks his non-metal paw.

Thor looks straight at me. "That's good," he says. "He sounds like Bucky."

"One of the reasons I took a liking to him," I say.

Whatever Thor was about to say next is lost as we hear a giant "AGAIN?!" from upstairs. I have to literally hold my head up to prevent myself from slamming it on the table.

"What was that?" Clint asks, looking utterly surprised.

"Oh," I say. "Um…" Of course, they can't understand what Sam is saying. They're probably hearing a bunch of falcon screeches.

"SHUT UP! THEY'RE GONNA HEAR US!" Steve barks back. I nearly do slam my head on the table. Bucky just looks slightly amused.

"Why is there a dog?" Tony asks.

"It's nothing," I say. "It probably just got in through the balconies or something. I'll go handle it."

I leave the room. As I go, I see Bucky jump up onto my chair and make himself comfortable.

I hurry up the stairs as fast as I can. Sam's door is ajar. Inside, I see he and Steve having an epic battle. An epic Mario Kart battle.

"Dude!" Sam says. "How are you doing that? You don't even have thumbs!"

Steve glances towards the door. His tail stops wagging and droops.

"We're dead," he whispers to Sam, noticing the murderous gleam in my eyes.  
"H-hey, sis," Sam says. "What's up…"

"I am going to kill you," I whisper.

"Please don't," Steve whimpers.

I groan. "They're all going to know! Do you _want_ me dead?"

"No?" Sam says uncertainly.

"Just...be quiet!" I snap. I turn to back downstairs, almost letting the door slam shut behind me.

When I return, Bucky is still on my chair. But he and Thor are _making conversation_.

"Alli!" Thor says when he sees me. "Pig was just telling me all about-"

"Thor," I interrupt, gritting my teeth. "Could you...maybe...possibly...talk in the hallway for a minute?" I jab my thumb at the hallway so he knows it isn't a request.

"Of course," Thor says.  
"Come on, _Pig_ ," I say. Bucky hisses at the table and follows me into the hall. I scoop him up. Thor closes the door behind him.

"Are you planning on telling them you got Bucky Barnes turned into a cat?" Thor asks.

"She didn't just get me turned into an animal," Bucky says.

"Shut up!" I say to him. He swivels his head to look at me.

"That's for naming me Pig," he says sweetly. He adjusts himself so his metal arm is sticking out. I groan, because I had totally forgotten about that.

"Why did you name him Pig?" Thor asks curiously. I groan again.

"Don't talk about that," I say. "I panicked."

"Are you gonna tell him you turned the rest of them into animals too?" Bucky asks.

"You turned the rest of them into animals?" Thor asks. I groan once more.

"It wasn't my fault!" I protest, glaring at Bucky. "You were there too!"

"She got the entire warehouse turned into animals," Bucky says to Thor, ignoring me.

"How many Avengers?" Thor asks, fighting back a smile.

"Sam, Steve, Wanda, and Nat," I say. I lower my voice. "You tell the others I'll smash your face in, Thunder God or no."

Thor chuckles. "I won't tell the others. I take your threats very seriously. Especially because I know you very much have the capability to, as you say, 'smash my face in'. Though I do have some ideas on how to turn them back…"  
"And that would be?" Bucky asks. I raise an eyebrow skeptically. Thor grins.

"You two have never met my brother, have you?"


	5. God of Mischief God of Dear Lord Help Us

**Back to longer chapters, sorry the last one was so short! Loki is coming...not that the Avengers are happy about it! It was all Thor's idea, I swear! Also, sorry it took so long, but while thinking of ideas for this story I wrote two more fanfics, titled Capture the Flag, Avenger Style! and These Days We Trade In Pop Tarts. Go and check those out if you want! Don't blame me if I do a bad job with Loki, I just saw the Iron Mans and am watching the Thors next weekend. As usual, thank you to all the kind reviews and follows/favorites, every time I see one it makes my day. Enjoy chapter five!**

* * *

Chapter Five: God of Mischief, God of 'Dear Lord Help Us'

"You _what?!_ " Tony very nearly screams. "Why would you do that? _How_ could you do that?! Last time he was here he very nearly destroyed New York City! And the world! The entire fu-"

Rhodey lays a hand on Tony's arm. "We get it, dude. You defeated him before. How bad can this guy really be?"

"Bad," Clint says. "Very, very bad."

Rhodey sighs. "I'm sure he's no match for Vision."

"Him, no. Him and his entire robot army, yes," Tony says, staring at Rhodey wide-eyed.  
"Oh, God. You _actually_ want to meet him, don't you?" Tony exclaims. Rhodey looks at his feet, sheepish.

"Maybe," he says.

"Do not worry, friends!" Thor booms. "I will keep my brother under control!"

Clint snorts. "Yeah. Right."

"It will be alright!" Thor says. "I will be back in, roughly, three hours. My father may take some convincing…"

"NO!" Tony and Clint shout at the same time.  
"I have not met Loki before…" Vision muses.

"Yeah, I want to meet the big bad god," Rhodey declares.

"That makes it two to two," Vision offers. "Alli? You are the deciding vote."

All four turn to look at me. Tony immediately launches into a heartfelt speech about why I should say no, with Clint backing him up. Rhodey protests to them. Vision stares.

"Um…" I say, holding up a hand. Everyone is silenced. "I think he should. I mean...it couldn't hurt to try. I mean, for him to visit."

"See!" Rhodey says. "Go get him, Thor!"

Thor beams. "I will be back, my friends!"

Clint groans. Tony is speechless. Rhodey is grinning and Vision looks slightly nauseous, which is confusing because he can't get sick.

As soon as the door slams shut behind Thor and we hear thunder, Vision voices his concerns.

"I do not believe this is the best idea," he says.

"Dude!" Tony yells. "You voted _for_ it."

"Yes," Vision says. "But I sense bad times ahead."

Tony groans and buries his face in his hands. Rhodey leads him off to his lab.

"I'm going to go shoot something," Clint says.

"Preferably targets," Vision adds on to his sentence. "I believe I will go look up information about Loki."

Vision and Clint leave and I take a deep breath. Loki had better be able to fix this, or I'm double dead. I think the stress of keeping the fact I've gotten five of my teammates turned into animals a secret is starting to get to me.

I gather up an armload of food to deliver to the others. First I stop at my brother's room. He, Steve, and Bucky are all there, talking quietly.

"Do you have more pills?" Sam asks cautiously, afraid I'll start yelling again. "I hear some words and some barks and meows."

"Yup," I say, slamming a bottle down on the bed next to their food. Steve jumps up to get it and promptly falls over. He gets back up, hanging his head.

"Sorry," he says. "I'm still not used to having four legs."

I grin. "We'll work on it. I'll bring Wanda and Nat back, because everyone's gone for about three hours. I have to tell you guys the plan, anyways."

"Sounds good," Bucky says, licking his non-metal front paw. I grin and scratch behind his ear.

"Oh," he says. "Oh, yes. Yes. That feels good." I do the same to Steve, who starts thumping one leg on the ground. Sam watches in disgust.

"I've spent enough time pretending to be a bird. I think I can handle myself," he announces. I reach out to pet him. "Don't you dare," he warns me. I grin and head off to find Wanda and Nat.

I knock on Nat's door cautiously, afraid she'll still be asleep. She's not. The ham I left by her door is gone, and her room is empty. I head to Wanda's room, hoping I'll find them both there.

Just Wanda. She's watching the television, enthralled in an old episode of _Star Trek_.

"Wanda," I say softly to announce my presence. She looks up, startled, and relaxes when she sees it's just me. "Come on, we're going to Sam's room to talk. Do you know where Nat is?"

"No," Wanda says. "Well, I think she said she was going to the training room. Trying to get used to having a snake body."

My eyes widen. "Training room?" Wanda nods.

"Oh, shit," I breathe. A scream, a very girly scream, echoes around the building.

"Go to Sam's room. Don't let anyone in," I say. Wanda nods and lumbers down the hallway. I sprint after her, going straight down the stairs to the floor of the training room.

Clint is hanging from the rafters, bow in hand. Circling below him is a boa constrictor. Nat.

"Alli!" Clint shrieks. "Get that thing out of here!"

"This _thing_ is your best friend!" I yell up to him.

"It's my _what_?!" he screams back.

"I said this _thing_ is my good friend!" I correct myself. Phew. That was close.

"Come on, um, Spider," I say to Nat.

"Spider?" Clint asks from the rafters. "Who names a snake Spider?"

"The same person that names a cat Pig, apparently," I mutter to myself. "Don't worry about it!" I call up to him, louder. "I'll take care of her!"

"You're naming me Ssspider?" Nat hisses in outrage.

"Just go with it!" I hiss back. "See ya, Clint!"

Nat grumbles something about "ssstupid girl" and follows me out of the training room. I go to the stairs as I normally do, but Nat freezes at the base of the first step.

"What is it?" I ask. She looks as embarrassed as a snake can be.

"I...can't get up the ssstairsss," she says. "I need to learn to control thisss body."

"Alright," I sigh. "We'll take the elevator."

One very uncomfortable elevator ride later, we make it to Sam's room, where Sam, Bucky, Steve, and Wanda are talking quietly. I give Nat some food and another pill for understanding the other animals.

"Okay," I say. "So, Thor found out."

"Obviously," Bucky scoffs. I glare at him.

"Don't interrupt me," I snap. "As I was saying, Thor found out, and he's going up to Asgard." I take a deep breath. "He's bringing someone back with him. Someone he thinks can help."

"And?" Sam says. "Who is this mystery person?"

I take another deep breath. "He's bringing Loki back."

I wait for the protests to simmer down.  
"Loki?" Nat hisses. "What do you mean, _Loki_?"

"Like, _Loki_ Loki?" Steve barks nervously. "Or, like, some other Loki that hasn't tried to kill us in the past?"

"Didn't he, like, bring a robot army that destroyed New York?" Bucky asks, confused.

"His scepter is the thing that Enhanced me," Wanda spits. "Will he have it?"

"No," I say, answering Wanda first. "Yes, he destroyed New York. Yes, it is Loki Loki. And what I mean is, we think he can change you back. If he can't, I don't know anyone else who can."

Steve groans and buries his face under his paws. Nat coils up and similarly buries her head in the center of the coil. Bucky and Sam simply look interested. Wanda jumps up and starts pacing the room with loud, thundering footsteps.

"Quiet down, Wanda," I say. "It'll be fine. Thor's gonna keep him under control, and Vis will be here too."

"Yes," Wanda says, sounding immensely relieved. "Vis. He can handle Ultron, he can handle Loki."

"And if not, well, I'm sure at least _I_ could handle being an animal forever," Sam says.

"Yes," I say. "I'm sure you could. And while we're on the topic of that, who's having troubles adjusting to their animal bodies?"

"Me!" Steve says, jumping up.  
"Me," Nat admits.

"Not really," Bucky says stoically.  
"I'm fine," Wanda says. "I can use a remote, walk, eat, and hit people. That's all I need."

"Alright," I say. "Steve and Nat, come on. We're going to my room. The rest of you, stay out of trouble." Wanda lumbers back down the hall and I hear her door slam shut behind her.

"I gotta see this," Sam laughs.

"Same," Bucky adds, casting a sideways glance at Sam to make sure he doesn't change his mind. That practically defines the friendship of my brother and Bucky. Sam says something, Bucky agrees, and Sam changes his mind. Lots of giving each other the cold shoulder. But, deep down, the two of them plus Steve equals a whole lot of insufferable, inseparable trouble.

"Alright," I announce as soon as we're in my room and the door is closed and locked. "First off, you need to realize that this is just you. It's your normal self, just in a different form. You need to realize it, and accept it."

I give them a few moments to at least realize this.

"Next, you need to know what you can do. Spend some time practicing what your current forms are capable of." I give them a long time to do this and simply watch as they explore what they can do.

"Finally, get used to it. The hard part is over, accepting your new form. Now you just need to spend some time practicing and getting used to your new form."

"Wow," Bucky says. "You could, like, write your own instruction manual or something. Alli Wilson's Guide To Being An Animal," he jokes.

"Ha, ha," I say sarcastically. He and Sam burst into laughter. "Very funny, you two. Now, get out of my room. Go hide. I think Thor is going to be back soon," I say, checking the clock. It's been nearly two and a half hours.

Once everyone is out of my room. I flop onto my bed. Teaching myself how to be an animal is tiring. Teaching others how to be an animal is just plain exhausting.

So help me, not five minutes after I've resigned myself to taking a nap, lightning strikes outside the tower. I rush down to the main floor, where Clint, Tony, Rhodey, and Vision are waiting. Clint is telling the others about the snake called 'Spider' that was in the training room.

"I told you," I say, joining them. "Spider is my friend."

"Like Pig?" Tony asks. "Ridiculous. This used to be an animal-free tower."

"Nonsense," I say. "There are four of them standing in front of me right now."

I watch, silently laughing, as they get it one at a time and break into outraged cries.

"Quiet," Clint hisses eventually. "They're coming." Everyone falls silent as we realize what's actually happening. Loki. Loki is actually here.

"Friends!"

The doors slam open. Thor enters the building, holding Loki in a headlock. "I have retur…" he trails off when he sees all of us watching him silently.

"Ah," he says, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. Then he grins. "I have brought my brother!" Thor takes Loki out of the headlock and keeps his arms pinned behind his back.  
"Oh boy," Tony says sarcastically.

A sinister smile creeps onto Loki's face. "Hello again, Iron Man." He glances around the room. "Is this all of you? Where are the others?"

"Out," Rhodey says vaguely.

"Who are you?" Loki asks. He frowns. "In fact, I do not recognize most of you."

"This is Rhodey," Tony says, pointing to Rhodey. "And Vision, and Alli."

"I see," Loki says, nodding. "And you believe if I were to, ah, _escape_ , you would be able to handle me?"

"Oh, we would be more than able," Tony pipes up. "If it were just Vision watching you, I personally would be perfectly comfortable with that."  
"And if it were, say, just the girl?" Loki asks pointing to me. "Would you be fine with that?" I narrow my eyes at being called 'the girl'.

"Her name is Alli," Rhodey cuts in, sensing I'm about to slap Loki. "And I would not agitate her."

"Also, probably," Tony adds.

"I trust that Thor has told you enough about us?" Vision asks.

Loki grins. "War Machine, Vision, and the Shifter. Yes, I've heard plenty about you."

"Alright, brother," Thor says. "Mister Stark, I trust you have a cell prepared for him?"

"Oh, yes," Tony says. "Uh-huh. Upstairs. In the training room. Fifty cameras, full body restraints. Tell me again why you thought it would be a good idea to bring him here?"  
Thor glances at me. I give a tiny, non-noticeable shake of my head.

"He has not experienced Midgard in a long time," Thor says. "When he proves trustworthy enough, Odin has deemed it that he shall return here."  
"That'll never happen," Clint speaks up, the first time he's talked since Loki arrived.

"Agent Barton," Loki says, nodding. "Long time, no see."

"As if I'd want to see you," Clint snorts, then spins on his heel and stalks towards the stairs.

"I brainwashed him," Loki informs us, as if this was news.  
"I'm still not over it!" Clint calls over his shoulder.

"Take him to the cell," Tony says. "Leave him there for the night. I'll deal with this in the morning." Tony and Rhodey follow Clint.

"Do you need any assistance with your...ah...brother?" Vision asks Thor.

"Alli and I have it," Thor says, smiling at Vision. Vision nods and phases through the ceiling, something he thinks is faster than taking the stairs. Which it probably is, but we've discouraged him from doing it since he phased in on Wanda, Nat, and I during girl night. We (quite literally) almost killed him.  
"Alright," Loki says, turning to me. "What do you really want? Why am I here?" He looks at Thor. "I do not want to be here. I prefer my cell on Asgard."

"We have a problem," I begin.

"You always have a problem," Loki interrupts.

"Shush," Thor says. "Or I'll put you back in the headlock."

"Please, no," Loki whimpers. "Your armpit smells."

"As I was saying," I interrupt. I take a deep breath. "Thor and I think you can fix it."

"Thor can't fix it?" Loki says, genuinely surprised. "That's a first."

"Shape-shifting is beyond my capabilities," Thor says.

"Shape-shifting?" Loki peers at me. "You are the Shifter, are you not? Are you having troubles with your powers?" The gleam in his eye could be mistaken for curious, or concerned, but I can see the truth. The gleam in his eye speaks greed.

"Not my shape-shifting," I growl. "Bring him to his cell. I'll talk with him in the morning." Before I leave, I give Loki a warning. "If you tell the others, god of mischief, I'll tear your throat out, slowly and painfully."

He nods, and I hope he can tell I'm serious. I turn around and Thor gives a chuckle. "Come, brother." Loki grumbles something unintelligible. I turn around and sock Loki hard in the jaw.

"That was for Manhattan," I snarl, then whirl around and walk back to the stairs before he can respond.

* * *

"He _actually_ did it?" Nat hisses in disbelief. "Loki isss _actually_ here?!"

"Yup," I say. "And I'm going to bed. We'll deal with this in the morning. Everybody, out of my room."

"Alright," Steve says. I go to open the door to let them out. "Wait!"

"What?" I turn back around. Steve pads in a circle nervously.

"I'm...um…" he looks down, embarrassed. "It's dark in here."

"And?" I ask, too exhausted to figure out what he means.

"Can I...um...stay in your room?" He looks up at me with literal puppy-dog eyes.

"You spent the night alone last night," I point out blankly.

"Alli, we just got here at four-thirty this morning," Sam says from where he's perched across the room.

I sigh. "Fine. Fine! Anyone else?"

All five animals look up at me hopefully. " _All_ of you?" I very nearly shriek. "Nat?"

"Asss much asss I hate to admit it, it ssseemsss different when you're an animal," Nat says.

"My room is cold," Wanda says bullishly.

"Your room is-" I sputter. "Wanda, you're a _polar bear_!"

"Yes," she says. "But…"

I groan. "Bucky? Sam?"

"As much I hate being in the same room as my little sister, they've got a point," Sam says. "It's different when you're an animal."

"Bucky?" I ask, pleading.

"I'd hate to miss out on the party," he says smugly.

I groan. "Fine. Fine! I'm too tired to care. But just this once! Got it?"

"Got it," they chorus.

I heave myself onto my bed and watch the others get comfortable. Wanda leans on my double-bed, her head resting on the pillow I'm not on. Nat coils at the foot of the bed. Steve and Bucky both jump up. Steve lays down lengthwise on the edge of the bed near Wanda, and Bucky curls up near Nat. Sam perches on the bedpost.

"You guys have no idea how awkward this is," I tell them. "Like, this is extremely awkward."

"I'm a sssnake," Nat says. "I'm sssleeping with a polar bear, a cat, a dog, a bird, and a human, and they are all normally humansss. How more awkward could thisss get?"

"Shut up and go to sleep," is Bucky's muffled reply.

I give a small laugh and then, all at once, I fall asleep.

* * *

"Pssst. Alli. Alli. Wake up."

I groan and my head flops to the side. "Five more minutes." I register something heavy on my stomach, something leaning on my leg, and something very wet on my arm. Something else is pressing up against my face.

"Alli, I sssaid wake up! You have to sssee this! I would take a picture if I had handsss!"

The events of yesterday come flooding back to me. Animals. Thor. Loki. Secrets.

My eyes snap open and my head jerks up. Sam, bird-Sam, ruffles his feathers. He was the something pressed up against my face. I look down. Nat is still at the end of the bed, silently laughing. Wanda is leaning against my legs, somehow snoring in polar bear form. Steve is draped over one arm, dog tongue lolling against my skin. Bucky the cat is curled up in a little ball on my stomach. I prop myself up on my elbows so as not to disturb them.

"Holy shit," I whisper. "How…"

"I don't know," Nat whispers. "But it'sss hilariousss!"

"Everybody up!" I whisper yell, glancing at the clock. 9:53. Wonderful. I slept in. Ah, well, just prolonging my appointment with Loki.

Sam is up first, probably because of his close proximity to my face. "What? What's going on? Who do I punch?" He flutters up to perch on the bedpost again.

"No one, Sam," I say. "You're fine."  
"Okay," he says. "Okay." He does a once-over of my room and bursts out into laughter.

"That is-" he takes a shaky breath. "Priceless!" He wipes away an imaginary tear with his wing.

"That'sss what I sssaid!" Nat cries.

"Ha, ha," I say sarcastically. "You two are very funny."

"We really are," Nat says, nodding her snake head.

"What?!" Wanda yells, jerking her head up.

"We're good, Wanda," Sam says. "Don't worry."

"Okay," she says, nodding blearily and laying her head back down.

"Don't fall back asleep!" I yell. Sam and Nat both shush me.

"Sorry," I say. "But it's time to wake up. We slept in, and I'm gonna have to figure out how to get all five of you to Loki somehow. Well, they know about Nat and Bucky-or rather, Spider and Pig-so three of you."

"Okay," Wanda repeats, getting up and stretching carefully.

"Two down, two to go," Nat hisses encouragingly. "You can do thisss, Alli!"

"Ha, ha, ha," I say, nudging Bucky off of my stomach. Instead of getting up, he hisses and digs his claws into my shirt and a few layers of my skin. I yelp and Nat and Sam burst into laughter.

I groan and nudge Steve instead. He snorts, but doesn't move.

" _Steeeve_ ," I moan. "Gerroff me!"  
"Huh?" he snorts. "Wuzzagoinon?"

"Get off!" I say, peeling his dog tongue off of my arm.

"No," he says stubbornly.

"Now," I say seriously.  
"I'll bite you," Nat offers. Steve jumps onto all fours, looking around wildly.

"No biting," Bucky mumbles, retracting his claws from my skin. I pick him up carefully and then unceremoniously throw him across the room.

"Hey!" he hisses in protest, landing on his side.  
"Huh," I say. "Look at that. Cats don't always land on their feet." This sends Sam, Nat, and a more-awake Wanda roaring into laughter. Bucky hisses at me again and I smirk.

"Ha, ha, ha," Steve says, staggering around. "What happened?"

"Nothing," Sam smirks.

"I'll go get breakfast," I say, stretching as I sit up.

"I'll come with you," Nat says.

"Nuh-uh," I say. "You guys are all staying here. I gotta sneak you up to Loki."

"Oh, yeah," Steve growls. "He's here."  
"I'll be back," I say, slamming the door shut behind me.

I make my way downstairs, exhausted. I'm running on very little sleep. Time to break out my brother's best invention.

Nobody is in the kitchen by the time I get down there. Perfect. Sam and I like to keep this our little secret. I start a pot of high-caffeine coffee and take out the special herbal tea packets meant for keeping you awake. Once they're both ready, I combine them and add a buttload of sugar to make it taste better.

I gulp it down. It still tastes disgusting, but effective. I immediately start feeling the familiar buzz through my veins. I'm ready to go. But first, a training session to work off some of the excess energy.

I make my way up the stairs to the training room. As I pass through the halls to get there, I spot Tony, Vision, and Thor in the War Conference room talking quietly. Figuring it's smart people stuff, I move along.

Once in the training room, I do a bit of stretching. Then I set up my usual targets. Five high-quality made human-shaped figures, draped in bulletproof clothing and with automatic guns I set on medium firing rate, all over a complex moving system. Stark Industries created it, of course. I stand in front of the targets, crack my neck, and jam my fist down on the start button.

Immediately the figures start firing and moving around the room. I drop to the ground. If this were real, I'd be picking gravel out of my chin and palms for hours. But it's not real, so I hit the cool, hard ground of the training room floor. Bullets whizz over my head and I transform into the form of a tiger. I sink low to the ground, roll to avoid a bullet, and one of the high-quality targets is in pieces within seconds. I think I've mentioned this before, but if I'm wearing bulletproof clothes when I transform, my animal skin remains bulletproof. If I'm wearing bulletproof gloves...well, the enemy better pray they can run fast.

I shift into the form of a cheetah and sprint towards the next target. I pounce, and down goes another.

I shift from cheetah to hawk and dive-bomb the next humanoid target. Quick as a bullet, I turn into a nose-dive, spin to avoid the bullets, and shift fluidly into an elephant, squashing the target flat.

Into a fly, whizzing around, the mechanised targets don't know where to shoot. I land on one target's shoulder and shift into a snake, wrapping around it's neck and squeezing until it's metal head pops off. Bullets rake up and down my scale, not harming me in the slightest. I shift into human form, scoop one of the fallen target's gun from off the ground, and shoot until the final target's head blows off.

I drop the gun and turn to use the automated sweepers to clean up the mess. As I do, I hear slow clapping.  
I turn to see Loki, in a cage that looks very familiar to pictures I've seen from an old SHIELD helicarrier. But this is of recent Stark design, much more advanced.

"Impressive," Loki says. "Remind me not to get on your bad side."  
I give a single nod, not ready to express gratitude yet. I note with satisfaction he has a large, purple bruise on his lower jaw that wasn't there before I punched him last night. He notices me staring and rubs the bruise absentmindedly.

"How long have you had your shape-shifting abilities?" he inquisits.

I narrow my eyes, not sure what he's playing at. "All my life. Or at least, as long as I can remember. Why?"

"Nothing, nothing," he muses. Then, "And what is your problem, exactly?"

I sigh and go to the intercom on the side wall. It's accessible from everywhere, so he should be able to hear me.

"Thor to the training room, I repeat, Thor to the training room."

Thirty seconds later, Thor bursts into the room, breathless. He sees me standing by the intercom, Loki watching, and the pile of broken targets and guns on the floor.

"You get the others, I'll clean this up," he says to me. His eyes show he wants something more...he wants to talk to his brother. I nod and take off down the hall, stopping before I run into Tony and Vision.

"Miss Wilson," Vision says when he sees me. Tony gives a half wave and continues down the hallway, whistling under his breath. I wait until I hear the elevator doors _ding_ shut before I reply to Vision.

"Alli," I say. "Just Alli. We've talked about this. Alli, not Miss Wilson. Wanda, not Miss Maximoff. Nat, not Miss Romanoff."

"Alright, Alli," Vision says. "I was wondering if I could speak with Wanda. Is she still sick?"

"She is," I say, gulping, trying to hold it in. "Very sick. She would be extremely embarrassed to have you there. She told me so. 'Don't let anyone in,' she said. 'Especially not Vis. It would be too embarrassing'." I nod solemnly to prove my point.

"I see," Vis says uncertainly. "If her condition persists, let me know."

"It's alright," I say. "I'm sure she'll be fine in a few, er, days."

Vis nods and phases through the ceiling again.

"You really have to stop doing that," I mutter, then continue towards the stairs. Most of the side effects of my coffee-tea have worn off, and I scramble up the stairs, only missing one step. I stumble forward and barely catch myself, but instead of hitting the cold concrete stairs, my hands hit fur. I hear a low growl and look up, expecting the worst. My heart gives a little when I see it's Wanda, with Nat, Sam, Bucky, and Steve all riding on her back.

"We heard you call Thor to the training room," Wanda says. "I assume it's time?"  
I nod. "It's now or never," I say.

"Did she tell you we heard you call Thor to the training room?" Steve asks, frowning.

"Steve, Sam, and Nat's pills have worn off," Bucky informs me.

I groan. "Go to the training room. Don't be seen. Wait for me outside."

"Got it," Wanda says.

"They told you we heard you call Thor to the training room, right?" Nat asks.

"Right," I inform her. "I know you heard I called Thor to the training room."

"Okay, good," Sam says. "Because I can't understand a thing they're saying."  
"I'll be right back," I say, then turn and sprint up to my room. I grab the bottle of pills from my bathroom, and while I'm at it I change out of my ratty old mission clothes I've been wearing the past few days into my normal black sweatpants and Star Wars t-shirt. With a bulletproof vest thrown over it, of course. It never hurts to be prepared. As usual, I go barefoot. I just like it better that way. I stuff my phone into my pocket and rush to the training room, thankfully without encountering anyone. I'm a little worried about Vision. If he keeps enquiring, if Wanda loses her focus and lets him into the other's minds for even a fraction of a second...

Anyways, I rush to the training room, thankfully without encountering anyone. The five animal-people are waiting outside it, just like I asked. I quickly give each of them a pill and stuff the bottle into my pocket next to my phone. Then I push the door to the training room open.

"Dear Lord help us," I mutter as we walk in.

* * *

 **That's it! I hope you liked chapter five, and once again, sorry for the really long break between chapters. And once again, so sorry if I didn't portray Loki and Thor's relationship very well, the only movie I've seen so far with the two of them together was the Avengers (which, consequently, I just rewatched today). I wonder what's going to happen if Vision finds out...he's a persistent one...and will Loki be able to cure the animal-Avengers? Stay tuned, and follow if you want to find out! Leave a favorite if you liked it! And every review I see makes my day a little better. See you around fanfic land, my fellow MCU nerds!**


	6. Loki Mulls Things Over And I Go Shopping

**Hello everyone, so, I've decided I'll try to update every weekend. This means that expect chapter seven next weekend, and the weekend after that chapter eight, and so on. So much thanks to Sabina Mohammad, DreamsAreMagical, nightmarehunter676, and UseAnotherName for your kind reviews!**

 **So here's chapter six! Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter Six: Loki Mulls Things Over And I Go Shopping

"Alright, Loki," I say. "Here's our problem." I give a dramatic gesture towards the door. Wanda walks in with the other four still on her back.

"You have a small zoo," Loki notes. "How is this a problem? I'm sure there is an actual zoo somewhere that would be willing to take them."

Thor chuckles dryly. "They are the Avengers, not actual animals."

"An Avenger's Ark," Loki says. "You want to change your name to Noah?"  
"This is hardly an ark," Thor says indignantly. "Can you change them back?"  
"Who am I looking at, exactly?" Loki asks.

"Wanda is the polar bear," I say. "You probably don't know her. You don't know Bucky the cat or Sam the falcon, either. But Steve is the dog and Nat is the snake."  
"I see," Loki smirks. "Hello, Captain. Black Widow."

Nat hisses and bares her fangs. Wanda yawns. Bucky jumps down and pads over to sit by me.

"Can he turn us back or not?" he meows.

"Can you turn them back or not?" I repeat.

"It's hard having the undesirable urge to sniff everything," Steve complains.

"Translate, please?" Loki asks.

"Can't you speak to animals?" Sam says.

"I can't speak to animals," Loki says, annoyed.

"Can you turn them back or should I stop wasting my time?" I ask him. "I have better things to be doing." Namely, catching up on sleep.

"That's a tricky question," Loki says. "It would be easier if I could communicate with them."

I sigh and take the bottle of pills out of my pocket. I turn to Thor and hold up one tiny white pill.  
"How can I get this to him?" I ask.

"What is it?" Thor and Loki ask me in unison.

"It's a pill," I say. "That will make it so you're able to communicate with all animals. They-" I jerk my thumb towards the animal Avengers, "-all have one."

"How is it that he can't speak to animals but Thor can?" Bucky asks. "Thor understood me just fine."

"I'm not sure," Loki says, immediately giving himself away. He groans and slumps his head.

"What was your plan, brother? Get us to open your cell and then escape?" Thor demands.  
"Actually, yes," Loki says. "But I'll be good, I promise."

"I don't trust him," Steve growls.

"None of usss do," Nat says. "Welcome to the club."

"Look, Loki, can you turn them back or not?" I repeat a third time.

"Eh," Loki says. "Depends."

"Depends on what?" I ask, exasperated.

"I'm actually not sure," he admits. "I could certainly try. I need materials."

"What materials?" Thor asks.

"I'll make a list," Loki says. "Come back in a few hours."

I groan. Now I have to get all five of them back to their rooms.  
"Sam," I say. "Do you think you could carry Steve out the window and up to your balcony?"

Sam jumps to attention and digs his talons into Steve's back. "I can certainly try, dear sister."

"Great. Do that. Thor, keep an eye on them." Sam takes off, and thankfully he's able to make it.

"They are safe," Thor announces.  
"Splendid. Go distract the others. Keep them away from the stairs and the residential hallway. Wanda, stay here. Bucky, Nat, you're coming with me." I scoop up Bucky and Nat slithers near my heels. I give Thor five minutes, then take off down the hall.

I get Bucky and Nat to their respective rooms within minutes. I do a quick check to make sure Sam and Steve are okay. Sam is playing Mario Kart while flapping his wings to keep himself in the air. Steve is taking a nap."  
"Hey, Alli," Nat calls from her room. "Can you bring up a ton of food for each of usss? Like, enough to lassst a week or two?"  
"I'll go to the store this afternoon," I promise. I rush to the training room. It probably wasn't a good idea to leave Wanda alone with Loki this long, because I'm not sure if she can still use her powers as a polar bear. We haven't tested it out yet.

Thankfully, Wanda and Loki are ignoring each other. "Hey," Wanda says. "Ready to get me back up to my room?"  
"I wouldn't do that," Thor announces, bursting through the door. "I'm sorry, Alli, but Vision was inquiring. He is currently by the stairs and wants to know if Wanda is feeling better."

"Tell him she's fine," I say. Then I come up with a brilliant idea. I go to Thor and whisper it in his ear. He looks doubtful.

"Since he is a synthezoid…"

"Exactly," I say. "We're not sure. Please, Thor."  
"Oh, alright," Thor says. "I admit I have been curious as well." Thor leaves, and I wait another minute or two before following, one hand resting on Wanda's furry back.

"Elevator," Wanda says. "Stairs are hard."

I nod, and we take the elevator up to the floor the rooms are on. We make it back to her room without encountering anyone. "Alright," I say. "I'll be back with food."

"Okay," I say. "See ya. Don't let Vision into your mind!"

"Got it," Wanda says, settling down and turning on the TV with one massive paw. I close her door and head to my room. I throw on a sweatshirt, sunglasses, and cap and make sure I'm disguised as good as possible. Then I go to Steve's room for the final touch to my disguise.  
"Steve," I say. Steve's ears perk up, showing he isn't actually asleep. "Steve!"

"Yeah?" he says, jumping up.

"I'm going shopping. You wanna come?"  
"Yes!" he cries. "Yes, yes, yes!"  
"Great," I say. "Cause I have no idea what you guys eat. For now, your name is...Patriot. Yeah, Patriot. Sound good?"

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes!" Steve barks again.

"I'm going to have to put you on a leash," I say. His ears droop. "Sorry, buddy."

"Fine," he mumbles. Then he perks up. "I've been cramped in here all day. I want to get OOOOOUUUUUUUUUUT!" he howls the last word. Loudly.

"Shh!" I hiss. "Let's go. FRIDAY, get me a leash."

Oh, shit. FRIDAY. I had completely forgotten about her-what if she told the others?  
"Don't worry, Miss Wilson," FRIDAY says. "I will not tell the others. I am assuming you do not want me to."

"That's correct," I say, sighing a huff of relief. "Thanks a million, FRIDAY."

"The leash will be up shortly."

"C'mon, Steve," I say. Steve is already out the door.

Halfway to the stairs, one of Tony's "Stark Butlers," as he calls them, meets us with a leash and collar that fit Steve perfectly. It even has a little key that says "Patriot" and fake vaccine information, as well as a seeing-eye dog harness so I can bring him into the store.  
"Wow," I say as I equip Steve. "FRIDAY, you're amazing."

"Thank you, Miss Wilson."

Steve and I take the elevator downstairs. The others must still be in the kitchen-

Shit.

Sharon Carter, one of my best friends, walks into the building, while we're five feet from the door.

"Hey, Alli," she says cheerfully. Then she notices I'm not alone. "Who's this?"  
"This is Patriot," I say with just as cheerful a tone. "He's one of my...friends. A stray."

"That's nice," Sharon says. Steve jumps up and puts his paws on her legs. She giggles and scritches him behind the ears. Oh, this is not good. Now Sharon kneels down. Steve licks her cheek.

"Come on, Patriot," I say, tugging at Steve's leash. "We have to go shopping."

"Bye, Alli," Sharon says, sounding a bit disappointed. She gives Steve one more pat on the head and walks to the elevator. I don't move until I hear the doors close.

"Whew," I say. "That was-"

"-Close," Steve finishes. "Did I do a good job acting like a normal dog?"  
"Perfect," I say. "Let's go shopping."

* * *

Ten minutes later, we're walking into the supermarket.

"Hello," a young man greets us - well, me - cheerfully. "How may I help you today?" He looks me over once, noting the sunglasses and the dog.

"I should be good," I say, mimicking his cheerful tone. "Patriot, get me a basket." Steve walks over to the baskets and grabs one in his mouth. He drags it over to me and I bend down and grab it.

The young man nods. I catch him watching me curiously but don't say anything. He snags a microphone pinned on his shirt, easily mistaken for talking to other store workers. I recognize the mark on the side as the same symbol on the machine that turned half the Avengers into animals.  
"He's one of them," I mutter to Steve. "Act natural. If they come, aim for biting the soft spots. Barrel them down if you have to."

"Got it," Steve growls, 'guiding' me towards the meat section. He takes what he wants and puts it in the basket, I'm not paying attention. I'm scanning the aisles for other soldiers of the mark - you know, I think I'm just going to call it that. The Mark. I don't know what it's actually called, no one does, but it's not HYDRA. I glance down as a heavy weight is added to the basket. But Steve is nowhere to be found -

"Everybody RUN!" I scream as what's been placed in my basket blinks faster. Steve jumps to attention, dropping the steak he was carrying in his mouth. Thank god I have a bulletproof vest on.

"It's a bomb!" someone yells.  
"Steve, go!" I scream, dropping the leash. I morph into a bear and pray my poofy fur will cover the bomb. I drop over it and squeeze my eyes shut. I hear patrons running, screaming, Steve barking. The bomb explodes.

* * *

I groan and open my eyes. I'm human again, sitting a few feet away from the remains of my basket and the bomb. A few people are picking themselves up off the ground, but no one is injured. Steve licks my face.

"You okay?" he mutters.  
"Fine," I groan. I look around. My hat and sunglasses have been blown off, and people are pointing towards me. I look around, see the man that greeted us and another man that must have stuck the bomb in my basket running away.  
"Get back to Stark Towers," I tell Steve. "Hide out in the alleys near it. Do _not_ come after me."

"What are you-"

I get up and run after them, shifting into a tiger mid-stride. People scream and jump out of the way, and I don't stop chasing after them. With one more stride I've taken the slower one, the young 'greeter' down. I shift into human form and aim my fist at his face. I swear under my breath as the other one runs out the supermarket door.

"Don't let him escape," I say to the shoppers standing around us. They let me out and form a tight circle, and I shift back into a tiger. As I take off, I hear people muttering. 'That's the Shifter!' Yes, I know very well I'm the Shifter, thanks.

I pump my legs faster. I've almost caught up with him-

And he dives into a waiting van. I shift to human form, stumbling, and whip my phone out my pocket. I barely manage to snap a picture of the back of the van. I zoom in on the license plate and send it to Tony.

"Enemy soldiers. Send help."

I quickly shift into a hawk and spot a golden retriever running in the direction of Stark Tower. I grin to myself and fly faster after the van.

We're almost out of urban Manhattan when I spot a comforting sight. Three people are flying towards me, two suits and a man.

Iron Man, War Machine, and Vision nearly collide into me.

"Alli?" Vision asks, pausing as Iron Man and War Machine continue. I morph into human form and he catches me.

"Yeah," I say.

"You look terrible."

"Bomb," I say vaguely. "I blocked it. Go after them-stop the van. At least two people. They were the ones-" _that turned the others into animals_. But I can't say that.  
"The ones that had the machine," I say. "That blew up."

"Alright," Vision says. "You'd better get back to Stark Tower. Shall I alert medical?"  
"No," I say. "I'm fine." I pause, thinking of what to say. "Thanks."

"My pleasure," he says. I note with satisfaction that he called me Alli earlier and not Miss Wilson. I shift back into hawk form and Vis and I part ways.

I fly as fast as I can back to Stark Tower, shifting into human form feet from the ground and landing gracefully. A few people mutter and point, and a golden retriever jumps up from out of the shadows.

"They're on it," I whisper into Steve's ear as I bend down to 'pet' him. He gives a huff of relief as we hurry inside.

"I take it your shopping trip didn't go very well, then," Thor greets us.

I groan. "I completely forgot about the food. I have five animals counting on me here."

"I'll handle it," Thor says. He glances at the cell phone in his hand. "I never have gotten the hang of these," he muses. "Perhaps…"

"FRIDAY," I say. "Get enough food to last all five animal Avengers at least two weeks. If we have extra, the rest of us can always eat it."  
"Yes, Miss Wilson," FRIDAY says. "Enough food for a dog, cat, snake, polar bear, and falcon to eat for two weeks has just been ordered. It will be delivered to each of their rooms shortly."  
"Thanks a gajillion, FRIDAY," I huff.

"I have heard that term," Thor says, confused. "It puzzles me. I don't think gajillion is a real number."  
"It's not," Steve barks. "It's an expression."  
"It means thanks a lot," I say.

Thor nods in understanding.

"Any progress with Loki?" I ask.

"He has made a list of materials," Thor says. "The invisible woman ordered everything."  
"FRIDAY," FRIDAY says. "My name is FRIDAY, and technically I'm a computer system. Like JARVIS."  
"Yes," Thor says. "I remember JARVIS."

"What materials does he need?" I ask. "Nothing that he could get out using. And one of us has to be monitoring him at all times while he's making it."  
"Don't worry, Alli," Thor says. "It's all been taken care of. But you need to rest. You look dead on your feet."  
"You really do," Steve barks. It's only then that I realize how tired I am. The adrenaline rush has faded, leaving me totally exhausted.

"I think the stress is getting to me," I say grimly.

"The stress of what?" Thor asks.  
"Keeping this a secret."

Thor nods again. "Steve, make sure she gets to bed."  
"It's only, like, three!" I protest.  
"Perfect, you'll be up for dinner," Steve barks. "Come on, Alli. Or I'll get Sam."  
"Fine," I grumble. "I'm-" pause for a huge yawn "-coming."  
As soon as we make it upstairs, though, which takes Steve and I a good five minutes, there's a huge crash from the first floor. We both freeze, our heads turning slowly towards the lower floors. We glance at each other and Bucky comes tearing out of his room.

"Downstairs," Bucky hisses.  
I turn towards the stairs. Steve shoves himself in front of the door.

"Oh, no," he says. "We're taking the elevator."

I glare at him and go to the elevator. Nobody is on the bottom floor.

"Med ward," Bucky suggests. I push the button for the infirmary floor, which is (not - surprisingly) very large.

Vision and Thor are hovering near the door uncertainly. I jog over, the cat and dog in my wake. I haven't seen Sharon since Steve and I left, which is probably for the better. She's just another person to keep a secret from. Actually, she might be the only person I could tell that wouldn't blow my face off.

"Who's the dog?" Vision asks.  
"Patriot," I respond. "Another friend. Where are Rhodey and Tony?"  
Vision points across the room towards two occupied beds. I groan when I see them - Rhodey is sitting up and sipping water, but Tony is out cold. The three of us (plus two animals) hurry over.

"What happened?" I ask, crouching down by Rhodey's bed.

"We got 'em," Rhodey says hoarsely. "They had machine guns. Shot Tony down. I got him and Vis blew up the van."  
"Good," I nod. I turn to Tony's bed. Dr. Helen Cho is taking his vitals.

"He'll be fine," she announces. "Just air pressure."

The room lets out a bated breath. We're all good.

"Now I really must insist you get to bed," Thor says, clearing his throat at me. "Patriot, Pig, make sure she gets up there."

"Will do, boss," Pig - er, Bucky - meows sarcastically. I make it up to my room no problem, and open the door to Wanda, Nat, and Sam in my room again.

"You've got to be kidding me," I sigh. But I'm too tired to argue, and simply strip off my sweatshirt and bulletproof jacket and flop onto the bed. Everyone resumes the same positions they were in last night, Sam pressed against my face, Nat curled at the end of the bed, Wanda on one arm and Steve on the other, and Bucky on my stomach. Within seconds, I plunge into a nightmare-filled sleep.

* * *

 **Again, thanks so much to everyone for reading! Review, follow, favorite, and I should have the next chapter up by next weekend!**

 **Actually, I wrote the first AN while school was still going and forgot completely about summer vacation. So probably next weekend, but maybe a little sooner!**


	7. Several Nightmares And Several Problems

**Hello all! I'm back with chapter seven! Obviously, since this is a day later, I'm disregarding the previous AN. I don't even know when you can expect the next chapter, but definitely by this weekend. Soo, you can probably tell from the chapter title that this ain't gonna be good. So much thanks to nightmarehunter676, Diana Black 12, and DreamsAreMagical for your kind reviews!**

 **Short note: It doesn't say who's nightmares are who's but it's pretty easy to figure out. Here's chapter seven! Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter Seven: Several Nightmares And Several Problems

" _Kill them."_

" _No."_

" _Kill them."_

" _Never."_

" _Kill them."_

" _Not happening."_

" _Fine. I'll kill them."_

" _NO!"_

 _A gunshot. One collapses to the floor. Not sure which._

" _Kill the rest."  
A sucked in breath. "Never." Another gunshot._

" _Two are dead. Kill the remaining."  
_ " _No." Choked out._

" _Fine." A pause. "I'll make you kill them."_

 _No, no, no._

" _Longing. Rusted. Furnace. Daybreak. Seventeen…"_

The cat jerks its head up. He's laying on something warm. A stomach...a human stomach. Alli's stomach. Alli. He knows Alli. And she isn't dead. That means...well, that means it was just a dream. They're all safe, there's nothing to worry about.

* * *

" _Buck. It's me. It's Steve. Your best friend."  
A frail, old voice calls out. "He can't hear you." The frail, seemingly kind voice turns sinister. "The monsters aren't listening." His laughter trails off._

" _Buck. Come on, Bucky, I know you're in there."_

" _James Buchanan Barnes is dead." The words he fears the most. "I am the Winter Soldier."_

The dog sits upright, then, spotting the cat awake, settles back down. It was just a dream. Just a dream. Everything is okay. It was just a dream.

* * *

" _Alli! Alli, no!" Shot out of the sky. She falls. Can't save her. Sister...gone. Dead. Just as feared, while gone for the military. While working. Lights flash before eyes, falling, falling after her. Unstrapping wings. Plummeting towards the ground._

 _And being saved. Saved, while she is dead. Saved, while he couldn't save her._

The bird, the falcon, jolts awake, looking around, not sure where he is. He glances to his right. A...dog? He doesn't have a dog. He's pressed against something warm. He looks to his right. The face of his sister. She is alive. She is not dead.

The bird ruffles his feathers and settles back down, eyeing the awake cat and awake dog wearily.

* * *

" _You cannot control their minds."  
_ " _I can control their minds."  
_ " _You cannot control their feelings."  
_ " _I can make them feel fear."  
_ " _They will only fear you more."  
_ " _So be it."  
Flashes. Flashes of visions. Of Pietro dead. Of Vision dying. Of Alli and Nat dying. Of them all dead. Chose this. Chose to kill them. Dead because of the choice to kill. And not coming back._

 _The world in pieces. Ultron's mind. Flashes, bits and pieces, of what is feared the most.  
Just as nightmares are designed to be._

The polar bear sits upright. It's safe. It's perfectly safe. Nothing is wrong. She glances around the room. Multiple of them are already awake. Only the snake and the human remain asleep.

She sighs, she'll never be able to fall back asleep after that. It's five in the morning, and was roughly three when they fell asleep. Guess they missed dinner.

* * *

" _You are not good enough."  
_ " _Pitiful. Why I bother with you I don't even know."  
_ " _Average, at best. At worst…"_

 _Pushing. Shoving. Lying. Cheating. Backstabbing. That is how the Red Room operates._

 _Good. Bad. Love. Hate. Alive. Dead. Here. Gone. Near. Far. Hope. Dread. Kiss. Punch. Try. Give up. Succeed. Fail._

 _Fail._

 _Fail._

 _Fail._

 _Failure.  
_ " _Natalia, you are a failure."_

The snake jolts awake, hissing loudly. The polar bear gives her a skeptical look, silently judging. The snake buries its head under its coiled body and tries to fall back asleep. She is not a failure, after all. She passed out of her academy top of her class, the perfect assassin spy. And sleep does not come easily to her.

* * *

 _My hand drifts towards my brother's face, blocked by the stained-orange glass. His breath steams against the glass, which is cold to the touch. I turn, and see anyone I've ever cared about blocked by the same glass that is keeping Sam captive. Sam. Bucky. Steve. Nat. Wanda. Thor. Tony. Rhodey. Vision. Sharon. Clint. Bruce. Scott. Peter. Maria. Anyone and everyone I hold dear in my heart. And I know, in my heart, I can't save them. The man behind the bullet-proof, shield-proof, blaster-proof glass chuckles and echoes my thoughts._

" _You can't save them."_

" _I can try." My voice comes out hoarse, not wanting to make a sound. In this dream - for I know it is only a dream, a skill I learned over the years from my brother - I am weak, not willing or able to put up much of a fight. I leave Sam and wander to the man behind the glass. "Why are you doing this?"  
The man smiles. "I will tear them apart from the inside," he says. "Starting with you."_

 _I give an outraged cry and my fists passes through the glass, shattering, and I fall through, into an abyss of darkness. Words echo around me, words in another language, followed by screams. Gunshots. Cries of no. Bodies. Bodies everywhere. No escape. I claw at the air, waiting to die-_

 _And suddenly all is light. I'm standing atop a helicarrier, watching the world fall to pieces. I've visited this dream, this memory, again and again. There's nothing I can do as Washington D.C. is destroyed, nothing I can do as I watch two men plummet to the ground. I know one of them is Captain America, the other is the Winter Soldier._

 _I watch as they fall into the river, watching as they both surface and the Winter Soldier drags Captain America out of the water and walks away. I shift into bird form and know Sam won't be worried if I don't come home for a couple of days. Silent as a cat hunting it's prey, any predator hunting it's prey for that matter, I take off after the Winter Soldier._

I jolt awake and take in my surroundings. I'm not lost like I was yesterday morning - I glance at the clock. Five AM. I slept a good fourteen hours, something I desperately needed. Much better than my usual six. Everyone is awake, but none of them know I am. I take in all of them, since I haven't had much time to process all of this.

Natasha, a boa constrictor, huge enough to swallow an entire human whole. Her scales are a muted olive green, with black...specs? I'm not sure what to call them, but I actually think they make quite a lovely pattern. She's staring out my window, her thin tongue flicking in and out periodically, apparently deep in though. Wanda is huge and white. I don't think I noticed this before, but instead of the usual black her paw pads are a deep, crimson red color. Her breathing is heavy, probably because she needs cold. I'll turn down the heat in my room if they're going to stay, we'll all survive. Sam is brown, with tan flecks through his feathers. He's quite large for a falcon, actually, and his talons are razor sharp. I know if he had to choose one animal to be turned into for who knows how long, it probably would've been a bird of prey of some sort. Steve is golden, but more muted, like the same shade of his hair. He's panting slightly and I know he's awake, even though his eyes are closed. He's slightly larger than a normal golden retriever, probably because of the super soldier serum. Bucky is a chocolatey brown color, the same shade as his hair. His fur is slightly longer than a normal Shorthair cat's, but about the same length. He's also slightly larger than a normal cat, like Steve, because of the super soldier serum. His head rests on his paws and he's staring out the window, lost in thought, as well. Something I've noticed about all of them, though, are that their eyes are eerily human. Almost as if they're the same…

I shift slightly to let them know I'm awake. "I take it everyone had nightmares, then?" Bucky murmurs, still half-asleep.

"What makesss you sssay that?" Nat asks.

"I woke up first, then Steve was panting like mad, Sam was screeching quietly, Wanda was clawing at the air, Nat was hissing in her sleep, and Alli was having a conversation with herself," Bucky recites. I can tell he practiced it. "Also, we were all kind of screaming in our own way."  
"I was screaming?" I ask.

"It was kinda scary, sis," Sam says. "We had to get FRIDAY to tell Vis to go away."

"Sorry," I say.

"Don't worry," Bucky says. "You weren't the only one. Sam, I do _not_ want to know what you sound like when you're a normal human having a nightmare."  
I try to sit up and find that Bucky has dug his claws into my stomach during _his_ nightmare. He extracts them, revealing ten small holes in my shirt and a few bleeding cuts.

"Sorry," he says sheepishly.

"It's fine," I say. "Though you should all probably go back to sleeping in your own rooms."  
"I prefer it in here," Nat says. "It'sss more...sssoothing, I guesss."

"Great," I say. "Then we need to make some changes." I sit up and they all look at me expectantly. "Tonight," I finish. "I'm gonna go get something to eat. Your food is in your rooms, FRIDAY had it delivered and-" pause for a yawn "-stuff."

"Fine by me," Wanda says, getting up and tenderly stretching her limbs.

"Let's get you back to your room," I say. "The rest of you, just, don't be seen." I guide Wanda out the door and hear the others start talking. Of course, trouble was bound to ensue.

Vision is standing in the hallway outside Wanda's door, as if debating whether or not to knock. I shove Wanda back into my room and lean against the door frame casually with a huge grin on my face.

"Alli!" Vis says, surprised. "What are you doing up this early?"  
"Couldn't sleep," I shrug, shoving Steve back into the room with my foot.

"Tell him to bug off," Bucky advises. Vision's eyes narrow.

"Some friends spent the night," I say, knowing all Vision heard was meows. He nods.

"Is he gone?" Wanda growls. Now he raises an eyebrow - or he would, if he had eyebrows. I'm not really sure.

"That does not sound like an animal native to New York," he says slowly and carefully. Wanda pokes her giant head outside the door. Vis, sadly, sees. "That does not look like an animal native to New York," he says, slowly backing away. I groan and slam my head on the door frame. "It's not. She's not. It's Wanda."

"Er, sorry, but...what's Wanda?" Vis asks, confused.

"The polar bear is Wanda," I groan. "And the snake is Nat and the bird is Sam and the cat is Bucky and the dog is Steve."

"They're….animals?" Vis says as the entire zoo marches into the hallway.

"They're all animals," I groan. "I was one too, but I can obviously turn back." I slam my head on the doorframe again. Then I jerk my head up. "You CANNOT tell ANYONE," I say seriously. "Or I'll hunt you down."

Vis chuckles slightly. "I don't doubt it." He approaches us and runs a hand through the fur on the top of Wanda's head. She growls slightly and ducks behind me. Vis looks slightly hurt.

"Do you want him to stay with you?" I ask Wanda. "I can give him a pill. Speaking of which…" I quickly pass out pills to everyone. Vision takes one as well.  
"And what will this do?" he asks.

"Just wait," I say cheerfully. He shakes his head as the effects pop into place.

"Can you understand me?" Wanda asks. Vision nods in surprise, looking confused and terrified.

"You'll be able to communicate effortlessly for at least six hours," I say. "Come find me if you need another. I'll be checking up and Loki." I turn back to leave a final warning. "If you tell the others, I WILL find you." Vis simply nods.

I rush to the stairs, pulling my hair back as I go. I burst into the training room in full stride to find Loki sitting and apparently waiting for me patiently.

"Oh, hello," he says in mock startled-ness. "I didn't know you would be here this early."

"Stow the crap, Loki," I snap. "I'm in no mood for your mind games today. We both know you're up to something. What is it?"

He looks at me with a falsely innocent look on his face. "What are you talking about?"  
"You're too curious about my abilities," I start. "If there's something you want to know, just _ask_."  
"Alright," he says bluntly. "What are your limits? The full range of your abilities?"  
"I can shift into any animal at will, communicating with all animals in any form, understanding all animals in any form, and fluently go back and forth while fighting. Also, I can be wicked with a gun," I answer. Countless press have asked for an explanation of my powers, so in my mind it's pretty polished.

"Can you turn others into animals?" Loki asks.

"Not that I know of," I answer, then frown. "I mean, I haven't really tried…"  
"If this doesn't work, you might want to think about that," Loki says. "Because I'm really not sure."  
"What are you even making?" I ask. "I haven't seen the list of materials you requested."  
"Half of it is Asgardian," Loki says. "It's most likely you've never heard of it before. Also, I'll need a drop of your blood."  
"Alright," I say. "Probably not. Wait, you need a drop of my _what_?!"

"A single drop of your blood." He smiles sinisterly and continues. "For experimental purposes."

"No," I say immediately.

"Do you want this to work or not?" he asks.

"We'll see," I say. "When the times comes, we'll see."  
I turn to walk out of the training room. As I do, I hear him mutter behind me, "Indeed we shall, Shifter. Indeed we shall."  
I shake my head and head to the kitchen area for something to wake me up. Maybe not Sam and I's coffee-tea-assload of sugar combination, a simple frappuccino would suffice.

I'm surprised to see Clint, because I can't recall seeing him yesterday night. "Where were you?" I ask as he nods to me over a coffee.

"Mission," he says. "Trying to see where that van was going. Got back an hour ago. No luck."  
I nod in disappointment and start searching for a frap.

"How's Wanda doing?" Clint asks. Everyone knows he's kind of like a father to her, and I'm surprised he hasn't been more concerned.

"Better," I say. "She let Vision in just now." Damnit, why did I say she let Vision in? Now he'll want to go in. "She's still really contagious, though," I add. Clint nods, he was probably expecting it.

"Anyways," he says. "We gotta birthday coming up." It takes me a moment to remember his family.

"Who's?" I ask.

"Cooper's," Clint says. "I was wondering if you knew when Nat was gonna be back."  
"Oh," I say. "Um…" To be honest, I had completely forgotten about that lie. "I'm not really sure."

"Well, she still has a week," Clint says. "Hey, speaking of things being gone, is that snake still here? Spider?"

"Um...yes," I say, nodding to prove my point. I switch to a different cabinet in search of my frap. Clint continues talking. Damn, he's talkative at five AM.

"So, anyways, they were saying Tony would be fine by morning," Clint says.  
"Uh-huh," I say, not listening to a thing he's saying.  
"Technically, this counts as morning," he says.

"Yup," I mutter, moving onto another cabinet.

"I think I'll go check on him," Clint decides.

"Okay, cool," I mumble. I glance up. "Hey, do we have any frappuccino mix?"  
Clint grins and holds up his cup. "I took the last one. We're out."  
I nearly shriek. "You _what_?!"

* * *

 **That's chapter seven! And yes, in case anyone was wondering about this (a few friends were wondering so I'm putting this in the AN), Alli is African-American. It hasn't been mentioned because she doesn't think skin color matters, so why should we? Anyways, see y'all later.**


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